The Bounty
by TheDreamyOne
Summary: Donovan and the team are assigned the seemingly mundane task of tracking down a bail jumper, but things are not always as they seem
1. A Sorry Assignment

Title:                The Bounty

Author:            The Dreamy One

Rating:            PG-13

Type:               Drama/Suspense

Feedback:            Always welcome.

Summary:            Donovan and the team are assigned the seemingly mundane task of tracking down a bail jumper, but things are not always as they seem.

Disclaimer:            UC:Undercover belongs to Shane Salerno, NBC (grrr-argh), etc.  No infringements intended.  All original characters belong to the author.  Please do not use without permission

***

"It should be easy for you, Donovan," Director Kersh stated, placing the file in front of his subordinate.  "Bail jumper, crossed state borders."

Donovan glanced with little interest at the file before turning his attention to Kersh.   He'd always had a lot of respect and admiration for him, but he had to wonder why Kersh was tossing this pitiful assignment his way.  How long had he known David?  Seven, eight years?  Long enough to watch the tall, lanky man's thick black hair transition to its now thinning silver gray.  "Come on, David.  A bail jumper?  What's next?  Night security guard at K-Mart?"

Kersh released a hearty laugh.  "If that's what you're looking for, Donovan.  Face it, your team isn't up for much more than this at the moment."  He watched as Donovan's eyes turned so dark he could have sworn they were as black as the agent's short hair.  

_Like I really needed that slap in the face_, Donovan thought as his fingers absently pulled at the hair of his goatee.  His team had taken a beating recently.  Jake and Alex had gone under as a pimp and hooker in a prostitution ring, trying to discover who was behind the newly formed family that worked the east side of town.

Some fluke in the transmitter had kept them from staying in contact and Monica had volunteered to 'meet' with Alex, while she worked the streets, to provide them with new equipment.  Timing is everything and it was right on target that night.  A drive by shooting had occurred and Monica had been caught in the midst of it.  Thankfully she had survived; the bullet exited clean through her side, missing her vital organs.  Again, Timing.  

While attention was focused on Monica, Alex was left to the predatory eyes of the man who ran the east side prostitution ring and he did not take kindly to the leggy blonde and her 'daddy' working his streets.  Jake had been beaten unconscious and Alex would have been if he and Cody had not heard her shout.  Cody had stayed with Monica while he went to aid Alex.  

Weird, but luck had been with them that night.  Monica, although injured, would only be facing a short stint in the hospital.  Jake and Alex had been released from the emergency room hours after being admitted.  They both looked as though they had been used for punching bags, but no permanent damage was sustained.  

He and Cody came out completely unscathed, of course, and they both felt guilty over the whole fiasco.  The only good thing that had happened was that a few of the girls who were turning tricks that night, having seen or been victim of a few too many beatings in the past, had come forward to tell all they knew.  The ring was shut down...for now.  There would be another to take its place sooner or later.  

"Look, Donovan...you want to keep this team?  Then you keep them busy.  At the moment, this is the only thing I have to offer you."

Donovan balked at the idea, but flipped open the file.  He blinked in disbelief when he read the section on the form that revealed how long the man in question had been on the run.  "Two years?  Christ, David...could you give me a colder trail?"

Kersh drew an irritated breath and released it slowly.  "If I had my choice, this thing would stay buried under the countless other cases in our organization."  Placing his elbows on the conference table, he leaned toward Donovan, speaking softly as if he were about to divulge who committed the Kennedy assassinations.  "There's pressure coming from high up on this, Frank.  The only way to get them to give it a rest was to tell them it was reassigned to a fresh pair of eyes."

"Thanks a buttload, David," Donovan groused, pushing the file away.  "Fine.  I have no profiler at the moment, but I'll see what I can do."

"That's all I ask."  Kersh shook Donovan's hand and immediately left the building that housed the special operations unit.

Cody entered the room and plopped down in the seat across from Donovan.  "You've got that look on your face, Boss."

Donovan glanced up from the file.  "Look?"

Cody nodded as he scrunched up his face.  "You know, that look that says you're about to make my life miserable."

Donovan shrugged.  "Depends on your ability to microwave this file and turn this case from ice cold to boiling hot."

"HUH?"

"Cody.  Copy the file; bring me back the original.  See what you can dig up on this _case_."   He pushed back from the table and made his way to his office, calling back over his shoulder.  "I want that file in five minutes." 

"Yes, _Sir,_" Cody ground out through clenched teeth.  Without Alex or Jake to distract him, or even Monica to attempt to soothe him, Cody was his only target at the moment and he was more than over it.  He could not wait for the two undercover agents to return the next day.  Whatever was up Donovan's ass, Cody was contemplating having him checked into the hospital to have it surgically removed.

Minutes later, Cody entered Donovan's office, tossing the file down in the middle of his desk.  "Here's the file.  I hope I made the deadline," he snapped sarcastically.    
  


Donovan sighed.  He knew he was behaving like an ass and the sad thing was that he had no idea why.  _Could it be the whole five hours sleep you've had in the last four days, _he questioned himself.  "Cody, if you have something to say...say it."

Cody stopped short of the door and turned abruptly.  He strode purposefully back to Donovan's desk and slapped a hand down on its top.  "If you blame me for what went wrong on the last case, just tell me straight out.  Stop treating me like something you just stepped in."

Donovan's brow shot up.  Cody had joked, jabbed, and smartassed his way through the months that Donovan had headed the Special Ops Unit, but he had never screwed up enough courage to confront Donovan on anything.  He stood slowly, keeping his eyes focused on Cody, causing the younger man to back down just a bit.  Was he _really_ that intimidating?  The thought almost made him laugh.  "If I blamed you, you would damn well know it."  He motioned toward the door.  "Find out what you can on this Wayne Drevin."

Cody nodded and made to leave, but stopped again at the door when Donovan said his name.  "Yes?" he turned hesitantly.  

"Just for the record, I blame me."

***

Wayne "Deeds" Drevin threw his last shirt into the now-ragged suitcase.  He had gotten a call about two hours prior alerting him that he was back in the game.  Although some up-and-coming Pennsylvania Attorney General decided it was time to poke around in the Luciano family again, Drevin had been assured things were in place that would allow him to return to his former activities in Philly.  He had been, and still was, a loyal member of that family since he was a teenager.

It happened every so often, whenever a rambunctious politician wanted to make a name for himself.  Would they never learn?  They would target one of the several crime families that divided various activities throughout the great metropolis.  It appeared it was Luciano's time again.  Deeds had the rare ability to deal with annoying politicians.  Either they wound up floating in the river, shot dead while in the throes of passion with their favorite whore, or a willing stooge for the mob.

The head of the family, Vincenzo Luciano, gave him the nickname, 'Deeds'.  Whenever something needed to be done that others felt was beneath them, Wayne would handle it.  As he grew and his lanky teenage body filled in, his tasks became more difficult and on the darker side.  By the time he was twenty, he was in charge of collecting anything that needed collecting.  

He snapped the clasps of the suitcase closed and grabbed his worn brown leather jacket.  Shrugging into it, he took a deep breath, feeling at home in the old coat.  It was the one constant in his life.  Since the day he had rubbed out the old fart at that Godforsaken convenience store, he had moved from place to place, staying one step ahead of the law.  Not the law, actually.  Just one determined bail bondsman who would not give up his bounty.   

He zipped the jacket and tugged it down over the waistband of his jeans.  Truth be told, the jacket was older than Methuselah and smelled like something died in it.  Not that Drevin noticed or cared, for that matter.  He had been born with a damaged olfactory nerve.  Not only did it keep him from experiencing the sweet smell of summer, it also kept him from realizing that his jacket carried body odor that could make a dead man rise from his grave and run for cover.  

With that charming quality around his shoulders, one might overlook his sagging middle.  Of course, Drevin thought he was drop dead gorgeous and no one could or would tell him otherwise.  "I still wear the same size pants I did in high school," he would boast to his buddies.  Of course, he didn't take into consideration that the waistband of his pants tucked underneath his beer keg gut. 

He released an irritated sigh, picked up the suitcase, and left the house through the rear door.  The family he currently lived with was all in bed and he didn't need anyone nosing into his business.   He couldn't believe he had used another town up, but at least he had been able to remain in one place for more than two months.  He set up a few connections for Luciano while he was there and made some quick cash, so all was not lost.  He would make a quick stop in Champaign, look up an old friend, and then he was going home.  It had been far too long since he had seen his old neighborhood.

***

To be continued...


	2. Unexpected Surprise

Donovan entered the Nest early the next morning.  He had decided enough was enough and had taken the new case file home to read over while he tried to relax.  The file was thin and reading through the reports and statistics barely took an hour to.  He was asleep within two minutes after reading the last page.  

He tossed the file onto his desk as he sat down and switched on the computer.  He had gotten the weirdest vibe while reading about Wayne Drevin the previous night.  The man had been arrested in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for a hit and run accident in which a 29-year-old woman and her five-year-old daughter were killed.  The only witness to the accident indicated that the driver had lost control of his vehicle and drove onto the sidewalk, hitting the two pedestrians.  Of course, Drevin claimed the vehicle had been stolen earlier that day and he had not been the person behind the wheel.  

Conveniently, there had been a stolen vehicle report filed, however, the physical evidence found in the vehicle belonged only to Drevin.  If the vehicle was stolen, the thief had been very thorough in not leaving behind any evidence.  The Judge that was hearing the case had set bail for the man at one hundred thousand dollars and somehow he had obtained a bond.  Drevin had jumped bail immediately.  

That puzzled Donovan.  From the background file on him, Drevin had trouble holding a job and moved frequently, and yet he still managed to qualify for a bond?  Odd.  The report did notate that his mother put up the collateral for the bond.  Still, a trip to Philly and a visit with the bail bondsman who put up the bond might be in order.

Hearing the sound of footsteps on the stairs leading to his office, he looked up as Jake and Alex entered the room.  Alex was sporting a nasty blackened eye, but at least she was able to open it.  She had attempted to hide it by brushing her bangs forward; although they hung in her eyes, it was hard to miss that shiner.  She wore snug jeans and a loose fitting long sleeved sweater that covered the deep bruises on her arms.  

Jake, on the other hand, had a harder time hiding his injuries.  The area around both of Jake's eyes were bruised, the left one had a broken blood vessel and the iris was surrounded by the sickening blood red color.  He looked like something from "The Night of the Living Dead".  Donovan's eyes fell to the cast that enclosed Jake's left hand and wrist; two broken bones.  Not even Jake's baggy jeans and rumpled black t-shirt could hide his varied other cuts and bruises, Donovan instinctively knew they were there, as well as the three cracked ribs that were tightly wrapped.  The kid had to be hurting.  

"Hey, Donovan," Alex greeted, sedately.  

"Hey, Boss," Jake chimed in.  "How've you been getting along without us?"

"Well enough," Donovan answered smartly.  "But it is nice to have you back just the same."  He nodded toward the chairs that sat opposite his desk and waited for them to sit.  "If you saw Cody downstairs, you know we have a new case...such as it is."

"Pretty lame one, from the looks of it," Jake commented, leaning back in the chair.  

"Where do we start?" Alex asked, only remotely interested.

"Here," Cody answered, entering the room.  He handed Donovan a sheet of paper.  "I dug up this police report filed yesterday by a Bosnian immigrant who claims a tenant ran out on the rent."

Donovan's right brow lifted while he read the report.  "Something has always bothered me about naming a town 'Normal'," he said, for no particular reason.  "Gear up, Jake.  Let's go for a drive."

***

Jake watched from the sidelines as Donovan talked to the owner of the two-story home they now stood in front of.  It was quite a sight to see Faruk Kovacevic looking up at Donovan, who towered over the Bosnian by nearly five inches.  The man talked frantically, waving his greasy hands as he did.  Jake guessed he was a mechanic by trade, noting the large array of tools that could be seen from the opened garage.  In the driveway was a vehicle up on blocks that seemed to be the man's current project.  

"You may see the room, if you wish," Kovaceciv stated in his heavily accented voice as he pointed toward the front door.  "It is on the first floor, just off the kitchen."

Donovan looked at Jake as he nodded toward the house.  "Jake, check out the room, I'll be there in a minute."  He turned back toward Kovacevic.  "Did Drevin say anything while he was with you, anything that would indicate where he might go?"

Kovacevic shook his head.  "He spoke very little and did not spend much time here.  Only to sleep."  Worriedly, he gazed up at the tall agent.  "We did not know...and the room has been cleaned.  It has been shown and may be rented soon."

Donovan nodded and handed him a business card.  "If you think of anything that may be of use, please call this number.  One of my associates will help you.  Thank you."  With a nod, he entered the house and made his way toward the back.  He had barely made it to the kitchen when he heard Jake's voice through his earpiece.  

"Um...Donovan.  You might want to get in here.  There's something here you'd want to see."

In a few quick strides he was through the kitchen and down the small hallway that led to the back room.  The door was open, and expecting to find Jake examining something Drevin left behind, he was not ready for what he found.  His chin nearly dropped at the sight of a woman holding Jake at gunpoint.

"What the hell?" he growled, drawing his Glock on her.  

"Back off, Handsome," she barked, flicking her gaze in his direction.  She shoved the barrel of her semi-automatic pistol into Jake's bruised cheek.  "Unless you want to see your little friend here with yet another blemish on his face."

Jake fidgeted slightly, fixing his eyes steadily on the stranger.  "I didn't know she was in the room.  She was hiding in the closet and jumped out at me when I opened the door."

"I don't take chances, buddy.  I don't know you from Adam," she said through clenched teeth.  "For all I know, you're friends of the former occupant of this room."

Donovan blinked slowly, taking in the sight of the 5' 7" blue jean clad woman with her hair shoved haphazardly underneath a Phillies baseball cap.  "We're Federal Agents, Lady.  Unless you would enjoy a long stint in a federal prison, I suggest you hand over your weapon."  He watched in silence as her moss green eyes darkened to near black with anger as they shifted back to Jake and then returned to him.  _Who the hell is she and what is she doing here?_  

He released a silent breath when she took a step back from Jake and holstered her gun in the back waistband of her jeans.  He made a move toward her to protest her action, which she defiantly acknowledged by lifting her jade sweater enough to pull it down over the gun.  

"I have a permit for it, Mr. Federal Agent, _Sir_.  You're not touching it."  One hand rested on her hip in an impudent gesture as she stared Donovan down.  

With the threat alleviated, at least for the moment, he noted with hidden amusement the way she swatted at an irritating lock of light auburn hair that had escaped the cap and tickled at her throat.  However, no one else needed to know that she amused him.  He lifted a brow in mock irritation.  "If I wanted it...it would be mine," he assured her, threateningly.  He knew he struck a chord with her when he saw her head twitch slightly before she put a finger to her softly rounded chin.   

"Well, what the hell do you want here?" she demanded, sweeping a graceful arm around the room.  

"I might ask you the same, Miss...?" he said, moving a step closer.  He nodded at Jake, giving him cue to search the room.  

"Jessica Crenshaw, Agent...?" she asked in return, also taking a step closer.  Her eyes roamed over his well-built frame.  She was never one for men who wore sweaters, but this man pulled it off nicely.  _Very_ nicely.  The black turtleneck and dark gray slacks might be drab on some men, but not this guy.  Whew.  She was right to call him handsome when he had first entered the room, but handsome was an understatement.  His swarthy good looks, superbly sculpted chin and cheekbones, as well at the neatly trimmed mustache and goatee he wore would make any red-blooded woman swoon.  But his eyes...deep brown and so piercing that she wondered just what those eyes saw when they looked at her.  Could he see through to her darkest secrets?  That thought caused her to turn away from him, moving toward the window to escape his intense gaze.

"Donovan.  Frank Donovan," he answered, almost reaching out to grab her when she moved away.  He rather liked her presence, strange as that sounded, especially only having known her for five minutes.  She had a distinctive scent, much like the clean smell of mountain air after a good rain.  It was a welcome freshness from the musky smell of the house.  "And the man whose life you threatened...Jake Shaw."

Jake looked up and nodded his acknowledgement.  He was still a little more than irritated with himself at being caught unawares and having a gun shoved in his face.  

"Introductions over, Miss Crenshaw," Donovan stated matter-of-factly.  "Why are you here."

"And lurking in the closet, no less," Jake commented, scowling at the woman.

She reached into her back pocket and pulled out a card.  She eyed the one named Donovan for a moment, indicating clearly that if he wanted answers, he could damn well come to her.  

Frank sighed his annoyance, but took the few steps necessary to reach her side and take the card from her.  "You're a bounty hunter?" he asked incredulously.  "Give me a break."  She definitely did not strike him as someone who would make bounty hunting their career.  

Jessica shrugged and reached for the card, but was denied when he snatched it away and pocketed it.  "I am, Sir Agent.  I was hired by Phillip Nordstrom to track down the scum who jumped bail, costing him one hundred thousand dollars."

He watched as Jake went through the empty drawers and closet, finding nothing.  "How long have you been after Drevin?"

"Long enough," she replied elusively.  "What I'd _love_ to know is...after all this time, someone is investigating this case?  What's up with that?"

Donovan's eyes narrowed at her accusatory tone.  She had folded her arms over her chest in a demanding gesture, and her well-worn tennis shoe tapped out an irritating tempo.  "I'm not here to answer your questions, but you have no choice but to answer mine."

She physically balked at his words and made a move to leave the room.  A firm grasp around her upper arm as she walked past Donovan stopped her in her tracks.  "You're going nowhere until I'm satisfied," he assured her.

_Oh no, you did not just lay your hands on me!  _"Honey..." she began, her eyes trailing leisurely down his body, lingering in one spot intentionally.  "I don't think you can _ever_ be satisfied."  Her eyes locked onto his and she saw something flash in the chocolate color of his eyes.  Amusement?  Irritation? Anger? Disgust?  She shivered instinctively; she wasn't sure she really wanted to find out.

"There's nothing here, Donovan," Jake informed him after closing the last drawer and checking underneath the bed.  "A wasted trip."

"Perhaps not," he replied, pushing Jessica somewhat forcefully toward the door.  "I think we've found more than we bargained for."

"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" she demanded, turning sharply toward him and breaking his grip on her arm.    
  


"It means, you go with us until I get the answers I'm looking for."  

"You're mad!" She turned abruptly and took one step before she felt her gun being removed from her waistband and that firm grip around her arm returned.  "This is ridiculous."

"It is, I agree...on more counts than you could ever imagine."  

***

To be continued...


	3. A Little Cooperation, Please?

***

The ride back to Chicago was silent misery for Donovan.  Their new acquaintance sat in the back of his Blazer boring a hole into his skull with her hate filled gaze.  He didn't even have to look into the rearview mirror to know her deep green eyes were on him; he could feel it.  Just as he could feel her presence and smell her sweet scent.  What the hell was he thinking forcing her to come back with them?  She may very well have been right.  Perhaps he was mad after all.

Jessica wasn't sure how long they had traveled before she finally spoke.  "This is little more than kidnapping, you sorry son-of-a-bitch," she snapped hatefully.  After they had left Drevin's last known residence, they had driven her back to the seedy little motel she was staying at and made her collect her belongings.  

Donovan shrugged.  "Call it whatever you want, but until..."

"Yeah, I know...until you're satisfied....blah blah blah.  What the hell do you want from me?" she asked petulantly and plopped back against the seat.  

"Drevin's trail is cold.  I don't know him, but maybe you know enough about him _and_ this case to give it a spark," he explained.  "After I have you checked out, you'll tell me everything you know."  While she had tossed her things uncaringly into her one suitcase, he had contacted Cody, instructing him to run a background check on Jessica Crenshaw.

Jessica smirked at the back of his head, silently wishing she could knock it right off his shoulders.  "Fine.  That will take all of five minutes."

"And here you thought I'd never be satisfied," he replied sarcastically, effectively ending the conversation.

***

"Hello, Miss Crenshaw," Cody greeted as Donovan, Jake, and their guest entered the Nest.

Jessica shot a displeased glance at the lanky man as he ran a hand through his wiry brown hair.  "Well, aren't you just the little genius?" she snapped.  She smiled sickly as she stepped around him and sat in the chair he just vacated.   

"Hey..." Cody protested and tried to shoo her away from his computer.

"Oh, look.  Here's the background check on me, Mr. Head Agent, Sir."  She made a face at the screen.  "Not a very flattering picture, but what can you do?  Anyway...says here that I'm 28 years old.  College dropout."  She chanced a look at Donovan and was not surprised to see him watching her intently, his anger growing by the second.  She winked at him uncaringly.  "You know...too many parties, not enough studying.  Sooner or later, Daddy's bound to say 'Enough' and make you pay your own way."  

Donovan moved around the console and grabbed her up from the chair.  "So you went into bounty hunting?  What a unique career choice," he said, bitingly.  She was fast becoming a royal pain in his ass.  He headed her in the direction of the conference table in the briefing room and accepted the file that Cody handed him as he walked past.

"Oh, not right away," she admitted readily, ignoring the sarcasm that dripped from Donovan's voice.  "I tried other things, you know.  Waitress, sales clerk, even played secretary for a while until the Bossman decided to get a little too touchy feely."  

Donovan urged her down into a chair and watched with little amusement as she placed her elbows on the table.  Before he had a chance to sit, she snatched the file from his hand and began to leaf through it.  "Miss Crenshaw, you are rapidly getting on my nerves."

"Good.  Feeling's mutual, asshole."  

His brow arched in reflex and he retrieved the file from her.  Her cheeks bore a deep crimson color and he was sure it was a sign of her building anger.  Her hair was still tucked beneath that damnable baseball cap and it was all he could do to stop himself from reaching over and snatching it from her head.  "Cooperate and you'll be out of here faster than you can..."

"Whistle Dixie?  I don't whistle.  Shit...save the claptrap for someone else."  She leaned back in the chair and stretched, pulling the baseball cap off at the same time.  She ran her fingers through her hair, combing it out as it fell just past her shoulders.  It didn't escape her attention that Donovan's eyes followed her every move.  

Donovan couldn't stop himself from watching as her back arched causing her breasts to strain against the material of her sweater.  When she removed the cap and her lustrous light auburn hair cascaded around her shoulders, it was all he could do to keep himself from reaching out to touch it.  "Can we just put aside the hostility?  I've been assigned to find Drevin and if you have any information that may help me, you're going to share it with me."

She huffed and sat forward in her chair, watching him intently.  She stayed silent while he read through the file and prayed this Cody person hadn't dug too deeply into her past.  She knew on the surface, everything appeared normal, but if someone were to dig around, they would find holes.

"So, Miss Crenshaw...you've only been tracking bail jumpers for a little over a year.  You've only worked for Phillip Nordstrom and have managed to bring in a few of his problem clients.  You've worked this case from the beginning with little success."  Donovan sat back and waited for her reaction, but she gave none and stared back at him silently.  "What? No smart mouthed comment?"

She shrugged her irritation and stood, walking toward the doorway.  "I've come close."

He remained in his seat as he watched her.  She had turned her back to him and was now leaning against the doorjamb.  "Close?  What's close?  Either you catch the guy or he's gone.  There is no _close_."

She slapped her thigh, tiring of his annoying questions.  "You are just so brilliant, Donovan.  Tell me what to do now, since I'm so fucking incompetent."  

"I'm not going to tell you anything..._you_ are going to tell _me_ what you know," he insisted coolly.  

Her file confirmed who she said she was.  Cody found she had a license for bounty hunting in every state that required one.  Most of the bounties she had brought in were small time offenders – bad checks, deadbeat dads, robberies; none that seemed dangerous.  She was a college dropout as she had stated, from a small college in northern Pennsylvania – Bloomsburg State College, where she studied Economics.  

"First I want to know what you know," she parried his demand.  "I've been in this for a long time, Mr. Donovan.  I need to..."

"It makes little difference what you need, Miss Crenshaw."  

Jessica spun around to face him, ready to argue further, but was met by a file folder thrust toward her.  "What's this?"

"What you asked for," he replied quietly.  "It's all I have to go on and it's not much.  Hence my request for what you have."

Jessica questioned him with her eyes.  His eyes appeared earnest as if saying he was through playing games.  If she could help him, he wanted it.  The file was a peace offering of sorts.  "Give me some time to go over this and I'll see if there's anything I can add to it."

"Fine." 

***

Donovan glanced over the file Cody had put together about their guest downstairs.  It was as flimsy as the case file, which really didn't mean one damn thing, but something wasn't sitting right with him.  Jessica seemed a bit on the testy side, and yet he wondered how much of that was for show.  Of course, he had nothing to go on in that respect.  It was strictly intuition.  

Bounty hunter.  He wondered how on earth she had gotten into such a career.  All that time spent chasing bail jumpers and never staying in one place for very long; it seemed like a lonely existence to him.  

_Lonelier than the one you've created for yourself?_ he questioned silently.  He didn't exactly have women beating down his door these days.  To be honest, he just hadn't felt the desire to pursue or be pursed.  He wrapped himself in his work like a well-worn coat protecting him from the cold.  

Ironically, it was his line of work that ultimately cost him his relationships and he had tired from the inevitable.  Sure, the women he had been involved with in the past would understand at first.  The long work hours and abrupt schedule changes caused friction in a relationship quickly.  As their demands increased, his patience thinned.  Six months to the day they began dating, it would be over.  It was a calendar he could rely on. He released a sigh and turned his attention back to Jessica's file, checking her background.  No living relatives.  Lonely girl.    

***

Jessica read the file quickly from cover to cover.  Unbelievable.  No mention of anything but the hit and run 'accident'.  It made her blood boil.  These people had absolutely no idea of what the man they were tracking was capable of doing.  She picked up the file and went in search of Donovan.  She found the one called Cody sitting at his computer.  "Donovan?"

"He's up in his office," a female voice answered.

Jessica turned to see the pretty brunette who entered the room.  "Yikes.  Who gave you that eye?"

Alex chuckled.  "Let's just say...I earned it.  I'm Alex, by the way."

Jessica accepted the hand Alex extended and shook it firmly.  "Jessica Crenshaw.  Now, where would The Man's office be?"

Alex pointed.  "Up there."

"Thanks."  Jessica made the trek quickly, entering the office without announcing her presence.  

Donovan's head whipped up when he heard the noise from the stairway.  "Hello, Jessica."

"Oh, it's Jessica now, is it?  Okay...Donovan."  She found it difficult to maintain her balance when he smiled suddenly.  The brilliant flash of white against his olive toned skin nearly drove her to distraction.  Damn.  _He could easily be a womanizer_, she thought, although it saddened her that he might be.  She wondered why she even cared one way or the other.  She had just met the man and as soon as she told him what she came up to tell him, she was gone.

"Frank."

"Okay...Frank.  Wayne Drevin, about 5'8", medium length blonde hair, greasy looking, slightly overweight.  Age forty-two."  She tossed the file onto his desk.  "It's sorely lacking in detail."

"Agreed."  He sat back and watched her walk around his office, inspecting every wall carefully.  She finally stopped at the large window and braced herself against the sill.  He turned his chair enough to face in her direction.  "Tell me what's missing, Jessica."

She nodded and absently chewed on her bottom lip for a moment before turning her back to the window to face Donovan.  "The _accident_.  There was another witness to the accident, or at least, there was rumored to be one."

He braced his elbows on his knees as he leaned forward.  "There's no mention of a second witness at all."

Jessica nodded.  "So I saw.  The victims, twenty-nine year old Laura Reynolds and her five year-old daughter, Tammy, were run down.  That's all you've got."  She pushed off from the window and paced the room slowly.  "What you have no record of is that there was a third person on the scene.  A sister, who is now missing...no one can find her.  She had told a cop on the scene that it was no accident, that Drevin had run her sister down on purpose."

"For what reason?" Donovan wondered aloud.  He stood and moved toward Jessica, who had once again turned her back toward him.  "And how do you know this?"

"I asked the cop that was on the scene that night.  He said he had filed the report with the woman's statement, but could give no reason why it was not in the records."  She turned to face Donovan, not realizing he was standing so close to her.  Startled, she lost her balance and nearly fell backwards.  

Donovan's hands shot out and grasped her by the shoulders to steady her.  He could feel the heat of her skin through the thin sweater and heard a voice in the back of his head demanding to feel more.  He shook it aside and dropped his hands from her shoulders quickly.  "Why would the records be tampered with?  What was this woman's name?"  

"I haven't discovered that little tidbit of information, Donovan....Frank."  Her eyes dropped down to his hands that were now at his sides.  Large hands, with long tapered fingers.  She felt the blush enter her cheeks at the thought of what he could do to her with those hands.  She had to get away from him quickly before he drove her insane.  "Her name is Melanie Burgess."

"I'll have Cody run a check on her," he stated, moving toward the doorway.  "Is there anything else you can tell me?"  

Jessica shook her head.  _Yes, but I won't._  "No, nothing."

Donovan sighed and nodded.  If she had more to tell, there would be a reason to keep her around longer.  "Is there a number where I can reach you if I have any further questions?" he asked expectantly.

"I don't own a cell phone," she answered smartly.  "But there is a number on the card you took earlier.  It's an answering service, but I check it several times a day."

"Very well.  We'll see if we can turn anything up on that police report."

Jessica nodded and moved past him.  "Good luck.  I haven't had any, and believe me...I've tried."  She didn't know if he would fare any better than she had, but it was possible.  At any rate, there was something she had to check on and time was running out.  If she missed the opportunity, it might be her last chance at Drevin.  "I'd like my gun back," she insisted suddenly.

Donovan watched from his office doorway as she descended the stairs.  "Jake...give her back her weapon.  She's free to go."  She said nothing further to any of his team as she accepted the gun, tucked it into the back of her jeans, and covered it with her sweater.  She turned and looked up at him for a moment before she picked up her small suitcase, opened the door, and left the Nest.  He frowned, watching her leave and wishing she would stay.  What a mixed-up feeling for someone he had just met.  _You're acting a fool, Donovan._

--

To be continued...


	4. Champagne, Anyone?

After Jessica's departure, Donovan went back to his desk.  He sat down and picked up the file Cody had compiled on Jessica.  _Twenty-eight years old_, he noted quickly as his eyes fixed on the photograph clipped to the inside of the jacket.  She was wrong, the picture was a perfect likeness of her.  Her soft shade of auburn hair, the deep green of her beautiful eyes, her shapely little nose, well-defined cheekbones, and those beautiful lips set just above her determined chin.  Jessica Crenshaw was a woman not easily ignored or forgotten.  He released a heavy sigh and pressed the intercom.  "Cody.  Run a check on Melanie Burgess.  She supposedly gave a statement the night of the accident Drevin was involved in.  That statement is not in your file."

Downstairs, Cody blinked at the intercom.  "I'll see what I can find.  Are you saying the report was deleted?"

"I don't know, Cody.  It's possible."

Cody nodded absently and began checking into the files stored on the case at the Philadelphia Police Department's database.  After hours of tracking, he found the file buried, deeply.  Actually, it had been deleted from the main database, but he traced it back to the computer it had been originally entered from and found it stored on that terminal's hard drive.  He printed it out and took it, and the background check on Melanie Burgess, to Donovan.  

"Here's that report."

Donovan looked up from Drevin's file.  "Thank you."  He read over the paper quickly and glanced up at Cody.  "Did you read this?"  From behind Cody, Alex and Jake entered the office.

Cody nodded.  "Could be true."

"What does the report say?" Jake asked as he sat in one of the two chairs in front of Donovan's desk.

"It states that Melanie Burgess was with her sister, Laura Reynolds, and her niece, Tammy, the night they were run over.  The trio had stopped at a corner drug store.  Laura and Tammy had exited the store ahead of Melanie, who was paying for her purchases."  Frank paused to take a breath.  "As she reached for the door, she heard the squeal of tires and before she could push the door open, a car careened onto the sidewalk and hit her relatives, pinning them against the building."  

"Pinning them?" Alex asked, shocked.

"Effectively killing them," Frank clarified.  "The child was unrecognizable...and the mother's internal organs were damaged beyond help.  She died within moments.  Miss Burgess stated that the person got out of the vehicle and made sure Laura Reynolds was dead before he left the scene.  She went on to describe the person, who fits the description of Drevin."  

"Dear God," Alex cried.  "And the sister witnessed this? How awful for her.  Where is she now?  Are their any reasons as to why this Drevin would intentionally kill Reynolds?"

"Burgess is missing," Cody informed them.  "I did a check on her, and she disappeared about three months after her sister's death."  Cody handed Donovan the report on the sister.

"That's odd.  Disappeared? Not, moved to another area?" Jake questioned.

"No," Donovan answered, checking over the report.  "The other thing that was hidden in that report was that Reynolds had witnessed a shakedown gone bad earlier that week.  According to Burgess, Reynolds was afraid to go to the police.  She believed if she came forward, she would become a target."

"Shakedown?" Alex inquired.  "What happened?"

"According to the sister, Reynolds had been in the back of a convenience store, unseen by the two men who entered the store and demanded protection money from the owner," Donovan supplied.  "When the owner refused, he was shot point blank in the face."

"So, what you're saying is that Burgess believes her sister was the victim of a _mob_ hit?" Jake asked incredulously.  

"That's what I'm reading here," Donovan stated, setting the report down and glancing over the background of Melanie Burgess.  Nothing odd there.  High school graduate, worked for a Temp agency as a secretary/bookkeeper.  Brunette, decent looking, if you could get past the thick-rimmed glasses that were perched on her nose.

***

Jess was beyond irritated by the time she made it back to Normal and retrieved her vehicle.  She hadn't fought going with Donovan too terribly hard, because she did not want him becoming suspicious of her.  Now she was behind schedule and by the time she reached Champaign, it would be late and difficult to set up surveillance.  Nevertheless, she intended to do just that.  

It had been a fluke to discover that Drevin had been staying in Normal.  She had been making her semi-regular visit to his mother in the retirement/nursing home that the woman was now confined to in Philly.  The poor woman was slowly losing her faculties and Jess felt guilty that she was using her.  

Jess had fabricated the myth that she and Wayne had once been close friends and she had come looking for a way to get in touch with him.  The old lady had enjoyed their visit; so much that she had asked Jess to come see her as often as she could.  She had so very few visitors and she would look forward to each time Jess called to tell her she was coming by to see her.  

To Jess, of course, it had been the perfect opportunity to try to pump the woman for information about her son.  As the visits progressed and the months passed, Jess had come to adore Addy.  How a woman as sweet and loving as Adelaide Drevin had produced such a cold-blooded murderer, she could not fathom.  Be that as it may, it was on her last visit to Addy that she had found out that Drevin was staying in Normal, Illinois.  

Jess had to give Drevin credit for one thing; he did call his mother fairly regularly.  If nothing else, the bastard did love her and made sure her bills were paid.  She didn't want to think about where the money came from, because it only tore at her sanity to know just how dirty it was.  She tried to trace the money, but what she found out from the accounting department was that money orders were sent at various times throughout the year, drawn from several different banks and had always been paid in cash.  They never contained addresses and only notated they were to be used to pay any and all expenses incurred by Adelaide Drevin. The amounts were small enough never to draw attention.  A few thousand here, a few thousand there, and from different states each time.  

She never brought up his lifestyle with his mother.  Addy believed he was a truck driver and that was why he was gone for such long periods of time.  She had no idea that he had jumped bail after the 'accident'.  It had been about that time that she had been put into the nursing home.  Who was Jess to ruin such a fantasy for the sweet woman?  No, instead, she would listen to Addy's stories of Drevin as a child, inwardly cringing and controlling the need to retch her lunch at the sweetness of it all.  Addy lived in the past and Jess could not bring herself to say anything that would upset the woman.  She waited for the moments when Addy was lucid enough to share any recent events in her life.     

The other thing that Addy had divulged was that Drevin had recently told her that a buddy of his, Tate Jeffries, owned a garage in Champaign.  Normal wasn't that far from Champaign, so Jess decided to check it out.  It was a slim possibility, but one she couldn't pass up.  She was running out of leads and if she didn't find him this time, she would have to go back to Philly and hope Drevin called his mother again soon.

She sighed and turned up the radio hoping to drown out her thoughts.  Her eyes caught sight of the business card she had tossed into the unused ashtray.  It had Donovan's cell phone number scrawled on the back, not that she had any plans to call him.  If she had that inclination, she would have told him about Drevin's friend in Champaign.  No, she had her fill of trusting law enforcement and she wasn't going that route again.  

For the first several months in her odd career choice, she had followed the rules and called the local authorities when she went after Drevin.  She had found it amazing how he had mysteriously disappeared just before she had been able to arrive with the police.  No, whatever was behind Laura's death, it went deeper than she had first imagined.  

If Laura had witnessed Drevin commit murder while doing business for a crime family in Philadelphia, it was possible that the family had members of law enforcement in its pockets.  Someone had changed those police reports and all references to Laura's sister, Melanie, and her claims as to what actually happened to Laura and her daughter were gone.  If that were the case, then it was also possible that each time Jess came forward with information about Drevin's location, it filtered back to those same members of the department that worked for the crime family.  Drevin had a heads up each time and slipped through her fingers.  

She wasn't taking that chance this time.  Donovan could chew on her right buttock for all she cared.  She needed to find Drevin, needed to end this before she lost what little of herself she still possessed.  It was time to close the ugliest chapter of her life so that she could move on.

***

"Do you have something for me, Cody?" Donovan asked, descending the stairs after hearing Cody yell out at the top of his lungs.  

Three days had passed since their encounter with the female bounty hunter in Normal, Illinois, and they hadn't made any progress on the Drevin case.  Jessica had entered his thoughts often since her departure and he had found himself gazing at her photograph on more than one occasion.  There was something about her eyes that haunted him, something familiar, something hidden in the depth of green that he should recognize.  

"Oh, yeah.  Got something all right," Cody nodded.  He waited for Jake and Alex to join them before he reached over and switched on the recording of a phone call he had just made.

"Landsing Hills Retirement Home," a female voice said.

"Mrs. Adelaide Drevin, please."  

Donovan shot Cody a slightly surprised look, recognizing the voice as Cody's.  

"Your name, sir?"

"Cody Forrester."

"One moment, please, while I put you through."

"This is Addy Drevin," a serene voice answered.

"Hello, Mrs. Drevin.  My name is Cody.  I'm sorry to disturb you, but I'm trying to locate your son, Wayne."

"Oh, honey, Wayne is in the park playing in the sandbox."

Cody stopped the tape and glanced at his coworkers to see their amused looks.  "I hacked into the Retirement Home's computer system for her records after I located her.  Mrs. Drevin is suffering from Alzheimer's disease.  One of the most interesting things I found in her history with the home is that besides the visits she receives from local volunteers, the only person who sees Mrs. Drevin regularly is one Jessica Crenshaw."  Cody noted the darkened expression that shadowed his boss' face.  "I'll go out on a limb here and guess Miss Crenshaw neglected to mention that."

"You might say that," Donovan growled.  So, she had nothing else to tell him, huh?  Really, he wasn't all that surprised, and some innate feeling had told him that he would be seeing Jessica again.  "What else did you find out?"

Cody held up a finger signaling for Donovan to be patient.  He pressed the play button again, continuing the taped conversation.  

"Mrs. Drevin?  Has Jessica been to see you?"

"Oh, yes.  She went for champagne."

"Thank you, Mrs. Drevin." 

Cody clicked off the tape again and stood waiting for a response.  It was perfectly obvious to him, but he had information they had yet to hear.  Still, it was fun to yank their chains a little.  Alex and Jake both carried a perplexed look on their faces.  Donovan just appeared irritated.  "Champagne?  Oh, man...look."  He pulled a map of Illinois up on the screen.  "Champaign, Illinois?  Ever hear of it?"

"Cody, don't you think you're reaching?" Donovan asked, absently noting the distance between Normal and Champaign.   "What would be Drevin's reason for going to Champaign?"

"I asked myself that very same question," Cody acknowledged.  "So, after talking to Mrs. Drevin, I asked for the administrator and identified myself.  I was able to speak with the nurse that oversees visitations and she informed me that in one of Mrs. Drevin's more coherent moments, she had mentioned that Wayne had a friend in Champaign."

Donovan leaned his butt against the edge of the table and folded his arms across his chest.  "Where exactly in Champaign is this friend?"

"Beats me," Cody admitted.  "But..."  He pulled out a slim folder and tossed it on the top of the desk.  "Our little bounty hunter friend has a vehicle registered with the Pennsylvania Department of Motor Vehicles."

"That's just wonderful, Cody," Jake said, sarcastically.  

"It could be," Alex piped up.  "What's she driving, Cody?"

"Chevy Impala.  2002.  Bronze."

"OnStar?" Donovan asked expectantly.  Many of the newer models were equipped with the GPS tracking system.

"Oh, yeah.  And it is now parked here..." He pointed to the street map.  "Near the corner of Bradley Avenue and Williamsburg Drive."

"Why don't you just call her cell phone?" Jake inserted.

Donovan shrugged.  "She's probably the only person in the United States who doesn't own a cell phone," he answered disbelievingly.

"What's located there, Cody?" Alex inquired, leaning over the map.

"Small shops, two garages, a strip mall."  

"Looks like we're going for champagne, too," Donovan stated humorlessly as he walked away and headed toward his office.  "Be ready to go in five minutes."

"Yes, Sir!" 

***

to be continued...


	5. Wild Goose Chase

"There she is," Cody announced as he slowed the van and parked far enough away from the bronze Impala so they would not be noticed readily.  

"That's fine, Cody.  Shut it down and set up shop," Donovan instructed.   "We'll stay put for the moment."

Cody, Alex, and Jake set up and turned on the equipment in the back of the van.  Highly sensitive microphones, cameras, and several computer monitors to view the surrounding area.  Donovan waited, making sure he wouldn't be noticed leaving the van by any passersby.  He didn't want to take a chance that any of Jeffries' or Drevin's pals would see him, making it obvious the van was there for surveillance purposes.

Jess groaned, spying her new arrival in the rearview mirror.  He didn't even bother to hide his presence from her as he sauntered up to the passenger's door and slipped inside the car.  "Hey, Handsome."

"You could have saved us both a lot of trouble, Jessica," he insisted, intentionally ignoring her sexist greeting and focusing his attention on the garage a block away.  

"Yeah, well...what would be the fun in that?"   She shrugged.  "Besides, why should I tell you anything?"

"It's a Federal matter now, Jessica.  I asked for your cooperation," he stated firmly.  "Now, I'm demanding it.  You pull anymore shit with me and I'll lock you up."

Jessica rolled her eyes.  "Oh, please.  Don't threaten me."  She uncapped a thermos and poured the hot liquid into a cup.  "Coffee?"

"No," he barked irritably.

"Suit yourself," she replied, taking a sip and sitting back against the seat.  "Look...I've been through enough shit with this case.  I've lost faith in the system, so forgive me for not spilling my guts to the first Federal Agent that shoves his badge in my face."

He almost laughed.  Even though he had refused her offer of coffee, she still passed the small cup over to him.  He accepted it and took a sip before passing it back to her.  "What exactly caused you to lose faith?"

"It's just that every time I'm close...the rug gets snatched from underneath my feet."  She braced her elbow against the door and rubbed her left temple.  "But, I have no proof, Donovan...Frank."

He watched the amused smile dance on her pretty mouth after tripping over his name.  "Jessica, Donovan is fine."

She chuckled softly.  "Thanks...it...feels right, ya know?" 

"If you say so," he acknowledged.  "Now...are you going to tell me what's going on, or do I have to..."

"Oh, please.  Do threaten me again, because it's worked so well for you in the past," she joked and laughed at his perturbed expression.

"No more threats, Jessica," he promised.  "But you aren't leaving my sight until Drevin is caught."

Jess blinked and favored him with an exasperated look.  "You plan on following me, Donovan?"

He shook his head.  "No, not following you.  I believe I spoke plainly enough."

"Holy Hell...you think you can keep me tied to your side?  Oh, no way, Mister," she insisted, motioning to the passenger door.  "Get out.  Now."

"Mmmm...not going to happen," he replied, noting that someone was leaving the garage.  "Shop's closing and no sign of Drevin."

"No shit," she quipped, stretching slightly as she yawned.  "That's Jeffries."

"How long have you been watching?" He asked unexpectedly.  "Ever since you left the Nest?  Alone, with little sleep."

"What's your point?"  She sighed and turned to face him.  He was so close and suddenly she wanted nothing more than to reach out and touch him.  To feel the warmth of his skin against hers, his lips as they caressed her skin, his tongue as it danced with hers.  She shook herself mentally; he could be her downfall and she needed to get away from him.  She needed to stay focused. 

"My point is that you may have missed him because you _had_ to do this alone," he answered gruffly.  

"I haven't missed him.  He's not here," she insisted.  "I've watched the garage and Jeffries' home and there has been no sign of him.  None at all."

"It is possible that if he even showed here it was for a brief stop and he moved on," Frank reasoned.  "I'll interview Jeffries tonight."

"_You_ will?"

He nodded.  "Drive.  My people will follow in the van."

Jess grimaced but started the engine.  He was persistent, she had to give him that.  He surprised her by showing up at all.  He was following through on a case no one else cared about.  Still, she couldn't bring herself to trust or believe in him or his team.  Sooner or later, their interest would wane and Drevin would disappear under the countless other more exciting cases that would come their way.  She expected that, but she wouldn't give up, not until Drevin paid for what he had done.

Donovan instructed the team over his ear mic to follow Jessica's vehicle.  He took in her profile as she drove along, and he wondered if she was purposefully avoiding eye contact with him.  She hadn't spoken one word since he stated plainly that he would be the one to question Drevin's friend.  She was fuming, as if she were taking this personally.  

If it were the bounty she was worried about, he could make it so that whether his team was involved in the capture of Drevin or not, she would still make her mark.  He didn't really believe it was the money.  There was something that flashed in her eyes each time Drevin's name was mentioned.  It came and left so quickly it was hard to put a finger on, however, he had caught its fleeting presence more than once.  There was more to this case for her than money, but just what was it that made her take things so personally?

He was startled from his thoughts when the car slowed to a halt in front of a medium sized two-story house.  He watched as Tate Jeffries disappeared through the side entrance.   "Stay here, Jessica.  Jake..."

"Right," she sassed, exiting the vehicle before he could reach out and hold her back.  

Donovan growled under his breath and followed her to the house.  He had just been about to call Jake from the van to follow him when Jessica jumped the gun and took off without him.  "Jake, Alex...stay in the van with Cody.  I don't want to scare Jeffries off if he's a little shy of law enforcement."

"Sure thing, Donovan."

Donovan caught up to her and grabbed her forearm none too gently just before she reached out to ring the doorbell.  "What in the hell do you think you're doing?" he demanded, releasing her arm sharply.

"I'll not be ordered around by you, Donovan.  This is my bounty..." she insisted through clenched teeth.  

Inwardly Donovan seethed, but he would not lose his temper.  His brow lifted as he moved closer to her, so close he could feel her breath fan his cheek and neck.  "Don't speak unless I say otherwise.  Do I make myself clear?"

Jess backed up a step, thrown by his commanding presence.  He towered over her slightly, but it was more than that.  His air of supremacy in this situation was not to be questioned, that much got through to her with just the look in his eye.  It told her that he would tolerate nothing, it told her 'Don't push me; you might not like what you see.'

He waited for Jessica to acknowledge his demand.  When she nodded her reluctant acceptance, he reached into his pocket and pulled out his credentials.  He rang the doorbell and waited the few moments it took for the door to be opened.  A young woman, maybe twenty-two years of age, answered the door.  A pretty blonde thing, her belly was swollen with child.  

"Mrs. Jeffries?  Yes, my name is Frank Donovan; I'm with the Justice Department."  He wasn't surprised to see her eyes widen in astonishment.  "I need to speak to your husband."  From across the room, he spotted Jeffries entering, still drying his hands after apparently washing up.  He stopped to ruffle the hair of the small boy who was planted firmly in front of the television.

"Millie, take Paul upstairs," Jeffries insisted sternly.

Millie nodded and quickly backed away from the door.  She took the boy by the hand and led him upstairs.  

Donovan didn't wait to be invited in; he stepped forward and entered the room, followed closely by Jessica.  "Mr. Jeffries, as you no doubt heard, I'm with the Justice Department.  This is an associate, Jessica Crenshaw."  He paused momentarily while Jeffries shook their hands politely.  "We're looking for Wayne Drevin, who has been rumored to be in the area."

Jeffries smiled wryly.  "Of course you are," he acknowledged shortly.  "Funny that you come by looking for him just days after he stops by; I hadn't seen him in ages and he shows up out of nowhere."  An irritated scowl crossed his face.  "So, naturally, you show up."

"Naturally?" Donovan questioned.

"Sure, Wayne's been on the run for something he didn't do and now that things have been straightened out and he's in the clear, you show up looking for him."  Jeffries shrugged uncaringly.  "Some kind of harassment, maybe."

"What do you mean?  Cleared up?"  

"You people are a piece of work, ya know that?  Look, he was on his way back home.  He's been in touch with his lawyer and apparently there is nothing to link him to that accident.  Nothing solid.  The only so-called witness can't be found and everything else is circumstantial."  Jeffries shot them a look as if they were complete morons for not knowing what was going on.

Donovan felt the anger slowly creep up his spine until he saw red.  Furious was an understatement.  _Why the hell am I being sent on this wild goose chase?_  

He was about to question Jeffries further when he heard Jessica's voice.  "Nooo...."  It had been just a quiet whisper of a sound, barely audible to anyone not within inches of her.  He cast a glance in her direction and watched as she masked her crestfallen features in a hard, stoic expression.  It was a quick transformation that might have been missed by him if he had not heard her painful, although quiet, outcry.

"Thank you for your time, Mr. Jeffries."  With a nod, he turned and took Jessica by the elbow, leading her from the house.  Once outside, he released her arm and held out his hand.  "Give me the keys," he demanded quietly.

Jess looked up into his stern expression.  She was feeling far too defeated to argue or fight with him and handed the keys over without a word.  

Donovan pulled away from the Jeffries' home after attaching his ear mic.  "Cody...we'll be settling in to a hotel for the night.  Once there, you get me in touch with Kersh.  He has some explaining to do."

"You got it, Boss."

Jess slumped down into the passenger seat and leaned her head against the window.  It couldn't be true.  All this time chasing Drevin to make sure that he paid for the death of Laura and Tammy Reynolds, only to lose out to technicalities.  Ridiculous.  It was enough to crush the toughest of spirits.

The silence was deafening and was slowly driving Donovan insane.  Why was she taking this so hard?  It was just a bounty for Christ's sake.  She was a mystery to him and her obvious dismay over the new development in this case had him baffled.  "Jessica, what's got you so upset?"  

Her head lifted from the glass and she turned an incredulous look his way.  "You have got to be kidding me, right?"  

His brow wrinkled in exasperation.  "I'm sorry, Jessica.  I just don't understand why you're withdrawing into a shell over the loss of a bounty."  

Jess sighed as she straightened up in the seat.  "Jesus, Donovan.  Not that I owe you any explanation regarding anything," she began hesitantly.  "Look, I just pissed away a year of my life, okay.  Excuse me for not being happy about it."  Her arms folded over her chest as she looked away, resting her head against the glass again.

"Hostility now?  Where is it coming from, Jessica?" he demanded as he slowed the vehicle to a stop in front of a local hotel.  

"You don't listen, do you?" she bit out as she exited the car and slammed the door shut.  She was inside the hotel lobby before he caught up to her.

"Jessica..."

She turned before she made it to the front desk.  "Look...I'm tired, I want to sleep.  I haven't really slept in days.  Get off me, Donovan."

He released an exasperated sigh.  "I'm not _on_ you, Jessica.  But if you think I've changed my mind about keeping you in my sights, you're dead wrong." 

Jess opened her mouth to tell him where he could go and which route to take in getting there, but held off when the door opened and the three members of his team entered the lobby.  "Tell me you aren't going to cram us into one room," she asked in a near whine.  Oh Lord, she was tired.  The whole world felt as if it was crashing around her and now she was beginning to sound like a titty baby.  Damn.

Donovan shot her a perplexed look.  "Just go over with the team.  I'll handle our sleeping arrangements."

"I want my own room," she demanded as she turned to walk over to his 'team'.  

Donovan shook his head.  How clueless did she think he was?  Something told him the moment he took his eyes off her she would run straight for Drevin's old stomping grounds.  What would happen after she found him was anyone's guess, but her feelings in this case ran far deeper than for the loss of a mere bounty.  There was no other explanation for her taking this so much to heart.  He had every intention of digging further into her background.  Something had been missed in the initial check, he was sure of it.  


	6. Truth in Dreams

After taking care of the rooms, he joined the others at the elevator.  Once inside he jabbed the button for the eighth floor.  No one spoke during the ride up and he noted each of his team eyeing Jessica curiously.  He assumed they wondered why she was tagging along with them, but he didn't feel the need or inclination to make any explanations to them at that point.   Stepping off the elevator, he led the group to the first room and unlocked the door.  He waited as they filed in, Jessica brought up the rear.

"Room key," she demanded, holding out her hand.  Her eyes locked onto his defiantly.

"Join the others, Jessica," he insisted impatiently.

She huffed a bit, but entered the room and watched as he sauntered over to what she thought was a closet door only to find when he opened it; the door adjoined the next hotel room.  "What the hell is this?"

"This is what it is," he replied sternly.  "You and Alex in this room," he said, pointing into the room he just opened.  Jake, Cody, and I will stay here."

"Hey!" Cody protested, taking in the sight of the two king-sized beds.  "I'm not sleeping with either one of you."

Donovan wanted to roll his eyes and shake Cody for good measure, but he remained stoic.  "Just for being the first to speak up, you volunteer to share a bed with Jake."

"Thanks a lot, Cody," Jake grumbled and sat down tentatively on the far bed.  "If you toss in your sleep, I'll beat you senseless," he warned.  His injuries were still very tender, especially his ribs.

"Wonderful," Cody groused and began setting up his computer on the small table in the corner of the room.

"I'll order up some room service," Alex inserted, picking up the menu.  "I'm starved."

"Sounds good," Donovan agreed.  "Cody, get me Kersh on the line.  I have some questions for him."

"Will do."

Jess slipped quietly into the next room, thinking to get away from the group and head off on her own.  The thought was so tempting, but she was so tired.  She looked at the door for a few moments, contemplating her choices.

"At least get some sleep before you try to run out."

The voice came from behind her, drifting over her, and blanketing her it its unexpected warmth.  Somehow he knew she wanted to run, wanted to head off at full steam, and go after Drevin.  Did he suspect?  Could he know?  It was possible he did.  That frightened her more than she realized it ever would.  If he knew, how long until someone else did?  And then, she was a dead woman.

"I'll stay," she whispered softly.  She was too tired to fight, too exhausted to handle the horror of Drevin anymore.  A shower and a few hours sleep and she would be back to her old self, ready to face the fear that was her life.  "But I'm going with you, wherever you go with this.  Unless, of course, it is over."

"That has yet to be determined," he answered.  He leaned against the doorframe watching her.  Her back was still to him and she seemed frail somehow, defeated and broken.  It was a sad sight to behold.  

She nodded.  "I understand."  She turned to face him.  Damn him for being so gorgeous.  She had no idea what to say as her eyes roamed over his tall frame, clad fully in black.  It should be illegal to be so attractive.  The words that finally left her mouth were so lame she thought she would die from embarrassment.  "I need my clothes and I know you don't trust me enough to go after them."  When he didn't answer, she shot him a 'give me a break' look.   "I want to take a shower."

He noted his thoughts regarding her state of mind were reflected in her green eyes.  She was close to the edge of something.  Not a breakdown, but something that threatened to engulf her and pull her over.  Although she was now putting on her snarky attitude, terror lurked in the murky moss depth of her eyes.  He wished there was a way to erase her fears and replace them with something happier.  He nodded his head toward the bathroom.  "Shower.  I'll have your things brought up."

He turned and slipped back into the adjoining room leaving her staring at the spot he once stood.  He was like a wall, impossible to see through.  He seemed flat and smooth on the surface, but she had the feeling once the layers started to peel away, there were many facets to the man named Frank Donovan.  No one could be as blasé and cold as he appeared all the time.  No one.

***

Twenty minutes later, Donovan stepped out of the shower.  He donned a pair of gray sweatpants and white t-shirt.  As soon as he spoke to Kersh, he was crawling into bed and shutting out the world.  He was toweling his hair dry when he walked back into the main room and was greeted by a shout from Cody saying he had Kersh on the line.

"Fine.  Put him on speaker," Donovan ordered, perching on an end corner of the bed.  After Cody pushed a button and gave him the cue that all was functioning, he said, "David...I think it's time you tell me what the hell you're really after on this Drevin case."

The room was silent waiting for Kersh's response, which was slow in coming.  During that short moment, Jess emerged from her own shower, clad in an oversized copper t-shirt, and covered by a cozy terrycloth robe provided by the hotel.  As Donovan had promised, her things had been brought up to her room and she found her suitcase just outside the bathroom door.  

"Okay, Frank," Kersh sighed audibly over the speaker.  "You know how it is...every time someone wants to make a name for themselves, they go after their local crime syndicate.  Philadelphia has their share of families, Luciano is the most prominent."

"I'm familiar with the name," Donovan acknowledged.

Jess heard the conversation and moved quietly to the door that adjoined the rooms.  She kept out of sight, wanting to be informed of what was going on, but knew Donovan would withhold information from her.  She didn't begrudge him that; she more than understood his position, however, it didn't stop her from needing to know.

"Going after Drevin was a diversion," Kersh continued.  "There are some weird happenings with this case.  The evidence linking Drevin to the deaths of Laura and Tammy Reynolds has slowly disappeared.  Shortly after Drevin skipped town, a report that was supposedly filed by Reynolds' sister disappeared.  I have never seen this report, however, the officer who took the woman's statement filed a complaint.  This complaint cannot be located.  It's only a whispered rumor amongst his family and friends.  And now the physical evidence linking him is gone, too."

"Has the officer been questioned?" Donovan asked expectantly.  

"That's the thing...he's dead.  Shot down while making a routine traffic stop four months after Reynolds and her daughter were run down."

Donovan's head jerked up at the sound of a shocked gasp and a soft thud against the wall.  Jessica.  She was eavesdropping.  _Damn it._  "What else, David?  What are you hoping for with this case?"  
  


"Morbidly enough, we expect Drevin to go after the sister.  All reports indicate that she has fallen off the face of the earth.  The case has now changed to finding her and putting her in protective custody."

Donovan indicated for Cody to terminate the call and he moved swiftly to the open door between the rooms.  He reached through the doorway toward the left and grabbed hold of the first thing his hand contacted – a terrycloth robe.  He hadn't meant to pull as hard as he did, but she flew forward, crashing into his chest.  His arms went around her reflexively to steady her.  

"I know you're angry," she began hesitantly, looking down in an attempt to avoid his stern look.  "I shouldn't have eavesdropped, but I wanted to know what was going on."

He nodded slightly and placed a finger under her chin, directing her to look at him.  "I'm not angry.  There was no need for you to hide."  He released a frustrated sigh and led her to one of the beds and urged her to sit.  He took a spot on the second bed, facing her.  "I know this bounty is more than the money for you."  When she began to protest, he held up a hand silencing her.  "I can see it every time Drevin's name is mentioned.  It's no longer something you can legally pursue."

Saddened, she nodded slowly.  "I realize that, Donovan.  I'm out of your hair in the morning...promise."

He shook his head and released short breath.  "No.  Somehow I don't trust you to let this go, Jessica.  And you'll only wind up screwing up your life."

"What do you plan on doing with me?  You can't lock me up...what?"  

Her eyes had grown cold and distant.  It was a sign she wasn't really listening to him.  His plans could wait until she had gotten some much needed rest.  "We'll discuss this in more detail later.  For now," he insisted, pointing to the bed as he stood and moved to the door, "you get some sleep."

Without protest, she shrugged off the robe and slid under the covers.  With the thoughts whirling around in her brain, she really didn't think sleep would find her easily.  _Officer Tollbridge was dead._  She had spoken to him shortly after Drevin jumped bail.  The man had barely been thirty years old, had a wife and a two-year-old daughter.  Just thinking about the cruelty of life nearly brought her to tears.  Dead.  Laura and Tammy Reynolds.  Dead.  The convenience store owner who refused to give into mob extortion.  Dead.  Kind and compassionate Officer Tollbridge.  For what did they lose their lives?  None of it made sense.  With a mournful sigh, Jessica rolled onto her side, pulled the blanket up around her, and drifted off to sleep with the feeling the coming of the new day would not make anything better.

***

Donovan lounged in the spacious bed leaning back against the headboard as he perused the latest information Cody gathered on Melanie Burgess.  A rather raucous snore forced him to look over at the other bed in the room.  Whether it came from Cody or Jake, he was uncertain.  Regardless, he hoped that whoever it was did not keep that racket up the entire night.  

His attention turned back to the report.  Before the 'accident', Burgess and Reynolds had lost their parents, as well as Reynolds' husband, in one of those freak railway crashes between New York and Boston.  Burgess and Reynolds had also been on the train, however, they survived.  Due to the loss of their family members, they both received a sizeable life insurance settlement.  When Reynolds died, everything went to Burgess.  In total, she received over a million dollars.  Amazing what double indemnity pays.  

He tossed the file on the nightstand and clicked off the bedside lamp.  As he sank down to rest his head on the pillow, he wondered what happened to Melanie Burgess.  Set for life in the money department, she just vanished.  Was it foul play or her choice?  As for the money, could it ever compensate for losing one's entire family?  No, he didn't think so.  He would bet his last penny that anyone in Burgess' place would give up every nickel to have their family back.  

He finally closed his eyes, determined to get a few hours sleep before the morning arrived and they had to book it to the airport and head to Philadelphia.  Alex had long since retired and when he had checked on the two women an hour ago, they were sleeping soundly.  Another snore erupted from the bed next to him and he knew damn well Jake and Cody were dead to the world.  Otherwise, the one who was not making those obnoxious sounds would be beating the tar out of the other one.  He relaxed and pulled the covers up under his chin.  His turn to sleep, or so he thought.  

Quiet sobs from Alex and Jessica's room brought him from his comfortable bed.  He didn't think to stop and put on his robe, he was too concerned by the tortured sounds echoing throughout the rooms.  Clad only in his thin sweat pants, he moved quietly into the other room and quickly noted that Alex was still sleeping.  The sobbing was coming from Jessica.   

He went to her bed and sat gingerly on the side, looking down upon her.  She was also sleeping, but in the throes of a frightening dream.  He reached out and brushed a lock of hair from her cheek.  For a moment, he rolled the silky tresses between his thumb and forefinger before releasing them.  She uttered something unintelligible and turned over onto her back.  Thinking she had calmed within her dream, he was about to go back to his own bed when she cried out.  It wasn't a scream, but a soft, heart-wrenching sound.  

"Jessica," he whispered, wanting to pull her out of her nightmare, but not wanting to awaken Alex.

"Don't go, Laura...please."  Her head tossed from side to side slowly with each word.  "Not fair...not fair..."  

Her voice was barely audible and he had to lean down to hear her.  "What's not fair, Jessica?"

"Melanie..."

Donovan frowned.  "Melanie?  What..."  He was about to ask her what she knew about Melanie when she stirred and her eyes fluttered open.

"Donovan?  What?"  She sat up quickly.  She lifted a hand to her cheek and felt the dampness from her tears.  "Good Lord.  I am turning into a baby."  When her vision focused and she realized he was bare-chested, her embarrassment increased.   

Donovan smiled compassionately.  "You don't look much like a baby to me."

"Right.  So, you came to tuck me in, Donovan?" she asked.  She was feeling just a little more than slightly embarrassed and her snippy attitude took over.  

"No.  You were crying in your sleep.  You said some things...while dreaming," he prodded, ignoring her snarky comment.  He was hoping she would divulge the contents of her dream.

Her eyes widened.  "I talk in my sleep?  Gawd, how humiliating."

"You didn't say anything personal.  You did mention Laura Reynolds and her sister Melanie," he informed her, his eyes locking onto hers as if searching for answers.

"Did I?  Odd."  

"That's it.  Odd?  Do you remember the dream?" he inquired, wanting more.  There had to be more.  She didn't even know these people.  Unless...   A sudden image flashed before his eyes.  Thick glasses and brown hair, but those same deep green eyes.

"No.  I never remember my dreams.  Do you?  Care to share?" she teased, a bit sarcastically.  He was getting too personal and she was feeling too vulnerable.  

"I do remember my dreams," he answered.  "Maybe someday I'll share one or two, but not until you give me some answers."

"Okay, Donovan," she countered, leaning forward until her lips were a mere breath from his.  "I'm up for it.  I find you intriguing enough to play this game with you.  I'll show you mine, if you'll show me yours."

He couldn't think; he could only react.  He pressed forward, his lips taking hers tenderly, at first.  The intensity built quickly as they explored each other, tasting, touching.  His tongue learned every curve and contour of her mouth, her tongue, the smooth texture of her teeth.  His hand cupped the nape of her neck, holding her, stroking her cheek with his thumb while he tasted her sweetness.  When she demanded entrance into his mouth, he gladly gave way to allow her the same access she gave him.  He met each thrust of her tongue with his own, taking every ounce of her passion he could drink in.  He only broke the kiss when he grew breathless and knew she had to be feeling the same.  

He sat back, devouring her with his eyes.  Her mussed, but lovely, hair, her lips swollen from his kiss, her breasts heaving from passion.  She was beautiful.  And she was a fake.  "Good night, Melanie." 

She sucked in a shocked breath.  _He couldn't know_.  But he did know.  She could read it in his eyes.  Eyes that held hers steadfastly, that looked right through her and saw all that she had hidden.  _He knows._  "How?"

"We'll talk in the morning," he insisted.  He should be angry, but he wasn't.  She had just admitted an overwhelming secret.  He could only imagine the grief and pain she had suffered at Drevin's hands.  Something drove her to change her identity to pursue him and he had every intention of finding out the truth, but it could wait.  She wasn't going anywhere.  "Slide over."

"What?"  She looked wildly around the room and her gaze fell upon Alex.  "What the hell?"

"Slide over.  I'm not taking a chance that you'll skip out while I'm asleep."  He lifted the blanket and gave her a little shove until she scooted to the other side of the bed.  "I'm tired and I plan on getting a few hours sleep."  He stretched out on the bed and pulled the blanket over them.  "Come here," he insisted, pulling her into the crook of his arm.  

"You've got to be kidding me!"  Exasperated, she turned onto her side and pillowed her head against his chest.  

"Just go to sleep," he urged, bringing his arm around her.  He'd have a great time explaining this in the morning, but it was all he could think of short of tying her up.  Besides, she felt good in his arms.  He would deal with the repercussions in the morning.

"Frank?"

"Hmmm..." he murmured sleepily.

"I'm glad you know," she whispered as she snuggled closer to his warmth.  "And I wouldn't have run out on you."

"I know," he answered quietly before drifting off to sleep.

***

To be continued...


	7. Truth Be Told

A/N:  I know it took Donovan a while to figure out Jessica's connection to Melanie, but he didn't have the insights into her thoughts that we did.  ;)  lol   Thanks for your patience with me regarding that.

***

Cody was the first to awaken.  He groggily untangled himself from the blanket and sheet that somehow became twisted around his lower extremities.  Rubbing the sleep from his eyes with the heel of his hand, he noticed, as he walked past, the bed Donovan had occupied the previous night was empty.  Thinking he probably rose early and went out for coffee for the group, he made his way to the bathroom and took care of the call of nature.  

When he exited the bathroom, he had a clear path into the room Alex shared with their new 'friend'.  Cody wasn't sure exactly what he thought of the woman.  After all, the first thing she had done when she met him was to touch his computer.  He didn't take too kindly to that.  However, Boss Man seemed to take a liking to her, and that wasn't something that happened very often.  At least, not in the time Cody had known him.  

As he walked back toward the beds, he noticed Donovan's shoes neatly tucked underneath the one Donovan had used.  Surely he wouldn't have gone out barefoot.  Not Frank Donovan.  _He sure as hell isn't in here_, Cody thought as he headed for the 'girls' room.  

The moment he crossed the threshold his chin nearly hit the floor.  He drew closer until he loomed over the two sleeping forms.  Legs completely entangled, they lay facing each other.  Jessica's cheek was pressed firmly into the meat of Donovan's bare chest and his chin rested on top of her head.  His arms wrapped around her, holding her tightly against him.  "Oh, you did _not_ sleep in here, leaving that bed _empty_ while I was tortured with the night sweats of one Jake Shaw!" Cody spat forcibly, startling everyone in the room awake.  

Shocked into wakefulness, Donovan tried to pull himself to a sitting position, but found himself wrapped around Jessica and could not easily move.  Not only did his arms completely envelop her, but also his legs were so tangled with hers he was astounded that they had managed to wind up the way they had.  Not that he really minded.  At this point, if there weren't other things pressing, he could have cheerfully made a career out of untangling and entangling himself with her again and again and again.  He enjoyed the feel of her in his arms, her body pressed intimately against his.  He could still feel the way her curves molded to him as if made to be a part of him.    

They knocked heads when they tried to disentangle themselves from each other; each emitted a painful 'ooof' and then backed away from the other to untangle their limbs.  It took all his effort not to burst out in laughter at the shocked expressions on Alex and Cody's faces.  Jake had yet to awaken, so he only had to deal with the shock of two instead of three.  Of course, Jessica's mortified look only further urged his laughter to subside.  If he were to let loose with the hilarity of the situation, he felt sure she would never speak to him again. 

"Holy Shit!" Alex cried, surprised.  "Puh-lease tell me my boss did not do the nasty in the same room where I was sleeping!"  She rose up onto her knees and bunched the blanket around her lower body.  "God....damn!"

"I...we...oh!" Jessica stammered.  Oh God.  If only she could curl up and disappear.  She turned an exasperated look toward Donovan.  _Say something, damn you!_

"Cody..." Donovan began.

Cody stood, arms crossed over his chest, still quite indignant that he was made to double up with Jake when there was a perfectly empty bed he could have slept in.  "I still can't believe you made me sleep with Jake," he groused.

"Get over it, Cody.  We have a little something we need to discuss.  Call room service...have breakfast and coffee sent up."  He paused when Cody shot him a disgruntled look before he turned to head back to the other room.  "When you're done with that, call Kersh and make arrangements for Melanie to be put in protective custody."

Cody stopped dead in his tracks and turned around slowly.  Alex took in a sharp breath and stared, jaw open, at Donovan.  Jake wandered sleepily into the room.  "Did you say make arrangements for Melanie? Did she turn up?" he asked sleepily, tying his robe securely around his middle.

"You could say...I was hanging on to her for safekeeping," Donovan quipped and winked at Jessica, who slowly slid down onto the bed and covered her head under the blanket.

***

"Why did you change your identity...er...Melanie?" Alex asked curiously before taking a bite from her bagel.  She glanced across the small table where the group, except for Donovan, sat eating the breakfast Cody had ordered from Room Service.   Donovan stood leaning against the balcony doorframe drinking his coffee.

Donovan watched as her clear moss eyes clouded to a murky haze.  There was nothing like asking someone who had been through hell to feel its flame again.  It had to be killing her.

Jess dropped her gaze from the group for a moment before lifting her chin, determined to tough out the emotions that raged through her.  Thinking too much sent her into a state of depression.  For the most part, each day she was Jessica Crenshaw.  She had convinced herself of that, literally beating it into her subconscious in order to make it through each day.  Melanie Burgess was just a phantom who surfaced in her nightmares.  It was easier to deal with the tragic loss of her sister and niece.  Especially since they were all she had left in the world.  Her eyes focused on Alex as she said, "I would prefer if you didn't use that name.  Jessica or Jess...please."

Alex nodded.  "I'm sorry..."

"No, it's okay.  I've become 'Jessica Crenshaw' for all intents and purposes.  I almost see Melanie as a separate person."  She pushed the eggs benedict Cody had ordered for her around on the plate.  Somehow, food was not a very appetizing concept at the moment.  "It was my way of dealing, I suppose," she admitted, ashamed of her cowardice.  She chanced a look around into the faces of the team, but instead of seeing abhorrence at her behavior, she saw only compassion.  "However, the identity change was a necessary evil."

"What do you mean?" Jake asked curiously before downing the remainder of his coffee.  As an undercover agent, changing names and identities were part of the bargain, but what would be the reason for an everyday citizen? 

"Oddly enough, the suggestion came from Officer Tollbridge," she replied and pushed her plate away.  She gave Cody an "I'm sorry" sort of look before sitting back in her chair.   "I spent weeks after my sister and niece's deaths trying to convince the homicide detectives there was more to the case than just a hit and run."  She sighed as the unwanted memories flooded her mind and brought with them the searing pain of loss she had so desperately tried to escape.  

"And what was their response," Donovan asked, moving toward the group and sitting in the empty chair next to Jessica.  He started to reach for the coffee pot but stopped when her hand curled around its handle.  "Thank you," he muttered as she filled his cup to the brim.

"They bucked me every step of the way," she admitted and answered his 'thank you' with a smile.  "As time passed, Tollbridge did a little investigating on his own.  That was when he discovered his report had been changed.  There was no mention of Drevin getting out of his vehicle to make sure Laura..."

Donovan watched as her hands began to shake and heard the audible catch in her voice.  His eyes held hers for a moment, silently attempting to offer her even the slightest of comfort.  What he wanted was to touch her, hold her, tell her to take her time and he would help her through this.  It was what he wanted, but knew he could not.  He had already screwed up enough in front of his team.  How would they react if he reached over and pulled her into his arms?  Still, there had to be a way to convey his message to her.

"...my sister, Laura...was dead," Jess stammered.  She was so close to breaking down, so very close.  When Donovan's eyes locked onto hers, she felt an odd sense of reassurance.  The dark depth of his eyes was fathomless and she knew she could easily lose herself within them.  She nearly jumped when she felt his thigh press against hers, but held back the surprise she felt at his touch.  It was warm and soothing and she pressed her thigh against his in return.  Just the slightest touch and she was his.  Sad, really, and yet, she welcomed the feeling.  

Donovan felt the return pressure of Jessica's thigh against his.  It wasn't exactly the way he wanted to touch her, but it would have to do.  He wasn't sure where her mind had drifted off to, but she had stopped speaking and her eyes had glazed over just a bit.  "Go on, Jessica," he urged softly, trying to bring her back into the conversation.

Jess took a breath to compose herself and regain her train of thought.  _Where was I? Oh, yes...the report.  _"There was no mention of me at the scene at all."  

"How did you go about changing your name?" Cody asked suddenly.  "When I did the background check on both Jessica Crenshaw and Melanie Burgess, the name change should have shown," he insisted.  After all, he was a computer genius, and a legal procedure such as that should have been easy for even a novice to find.

Jess bit her lip and cringed just slightly.  "This is off the record.  If you do any follow up on this...well, I don't know what I'll do, but I'll definitely be pissed," she assured.  

Alex blinked.  "Well, that has to be the wimpiest threat I've ever heard."

Jess shrugged.  "I'm too messed up to think straight right now.  I'll get back to you on that," she replied with a hesitant laugh.

"Off the record," Donovan stated matter-of-factly.  "It will go no farther than this room."

Jess nodded and curled her hand around her mug of coffee.  "I'm an Enigma."

"Er...huh?" Jake commented.  

She smiled slowly, turning her attention to Cody.  "Surely you know what I mean."

Cody's eyes widened momentarily and then he released a gasp of astonishment.  "You _know_ Enigma?" he asked excitedly.

"Okay...I don't like being behind Cody in the 'I get it' category," Alex admitted jokingly.  Jake was quick to agree.

Donovan turned slightly in his chair, facing her.  "Enigma?  The computer hacker?"

"The same," she admitted, her eyes fixed on his steadily.  She was waiting for him to go off, demanding more information about the Hacker.  The FBI and any other acronym she could think of wanted Enigma.

"How do you know Enigma?" Cody asked.  Completely awed, he added, "Enigma hacked into the IRS data base last year and shut them down for weeks!"  

"Cody," Alex interrupted.  "You sound as though you're _proud_ of that accomplishment."

"Who me? Naw..."  When Jessica remained silent, he prodded, "Come on...at least tell me if Enigma is male or female."

"Why?  You need a date?" Jess asked smoothly.  "No, I will not even reveal that.  Sorry.  I gave my word."

"I won't tell anyone," Cody assured.

"Can we get back to the matter at hand?" Donovan scolded.  "Jessica..."

Jessica would have laughed at Cody's 'little boy' excitement if it weren't for the harsh look Donovan carried on his handsome face.  He was in full swing business mode and he wanted answers.  "Tollbridge...he was seriously freaked over the files being altered.  Begged me to stop nosing around, but wouldn't tell me why."

"He suspected someone on the force having a hand in it," Jake suggested.  "And he felt you might piss off the very person who altered those records."

"It wouldn't surprise me," Jess agreed and pushed back from the table, taking Donovan's former position at the balcony door.  "After Drevin jumped bail, Tollbridge got me the name of the bondsman who put up the money."

Alex leaned back in her chair.  "And Nordstrom hired you after you contacted him?"

Jess shook her head.  "Oh hell, no.  Nordstrom thought I was a pest at first.  He put another of his people on the case."  Jess paused as something clicked in her head.  "Oh, Jesus!  It never dawned on me that this was anything but coincidence.  That hunter was gunned down behind a roadhouse in Texas while supposedly tracking another jumper unrelated to the Drevin case."

"Damn," Jake exclaimed.  "So how did you become 'Jessica'?"

She shrugged with great effort, as if the weight of the world rested on her shoulders and even that slight movement was a difficult task.  "I bugged Nordstrom daily for information. I mean...I was _really_ persistent.  He was the person who gave me Addy."  

"Bugging a person would not gain his respect enough to hand over a job like this," Alex insisted.

"I guess I just irritated him enough to where he felt responsible for me.  Kinda got under his skin, he said."  Jess smiled wearily remembering the times she goaded information out of Nordstrom.  "But he was impressed at how I handled Addy, and so he offered me a job."

"How'd you hook up with Enigma?"  Cody asked, not able to let that topic die.

"I really don't know how or why he hooked me up with Enigma," she replied, crossing her arms over her chest.  "But I think now, it was because he knew that other hunter was killed because he was on the Drevin case."

"So, Nordstrom got you in touch with Enigma?" Donovan questioned as he moved to stand at the other side of the balcony door, facing her.

Jess nodded.  "You'd be surprised just what money can buy in this country," she said offhandedly as she fingered the glass to the balcony door.  "It was amazing really.  Enigma mirrored my former life.  Driver's license, dental records, social security, fingerprints...the whole nine yards.  If you run my prints...Melanie Burgess will not come up, I assure you."

"How much did this cost," Cody wondered aloud.

"You planning on going into business for yourself, Cody?" Alex teased.

"Ha ha.  No, just curious."

"Let's just say it was worth every penny.  And you'll get no more information from me about Enigma," she insisted, turned a hardened gaze on Donovan.  His face became unreadable, but she wasn't afraid of him.  She had made a deal and would not renege.  No one would get anything from her regarding the wanted Hacker.  "I owe Enigma more than money.  It's possible that I owe my life."

Donovan nodded, signaling the end of the interrogation.  "As I stated, this is off the record.  As far as I'm concerned, you took matters into your own hands, wore down Nordstrom until he gave you a go at Drevin.  Whether he knew you were the victim's sister or not, is another question, but really doesn't matter at this point."  His eyes followed her movements as she reached for the door to the balcony, gave him a nod of thanks, and slipped through.  He watched her for a moment as she stood at the edge, gazing off into the horizon.  She seemed very small and lost at that moment.

"So what's our next move, Boss?" Jake asked quietly.  His eyes watched Donovan as Donovan watched Jessica.  It didn't take a rocket scientist to know that strong and stoic Donovan had a fixation for the Huntress.  How long would it take 'Superman' to know he had fallen?

"At the moment, we're waiting for orders from Kersh.  He wants Melanie taken to a safe house and will call with the location," Donovan answered.  

Donovan's hand closed over the doorknob and he turned it slowly.  _Don't go out there.  Don't go to her.  It's something that can never be.  Don't set yourself up for the fall._  He shrugged off the annoying little voice that whispered at the back of his brain.  Her pain weighed far heavier on his conscience than his heart's self-preservation.  It wasn't really in danger, was it?  

Quietly, he moved up behind her and placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.  He drew in a surprised breath when she turned without hesitation and slid her arms around him, burying her face in his chest.  His arms went around her and drew her even tighter against him.  He whispered soothingly to her as the sobs wracked her body.  He held her and offered her his strength until she quieted and pulled away slightly.  He looked down into her tear-streaked face, her eyes still brimming with tears, and he was at a loss as to what to do to make things right.

Jess offered a little smile.  She was embarrassed by her behavior in front of him.  "I think I ruined your shirt," she joked, hoping to alleviate her own discomfort.

Donovan chuckled and placed a finger under her chin.  "Not to worry.  I have others," he assured her.  

Silence descended upon them as they gazed into each other's eyes.  Each wanted what the other wanted, but they were powerless to act upon it.  Donovan felt the greatest urge to kiss her, to crush his lips to hers and taste her sweet mouth.  Jessica wanted him to do just that.  The noise from the door opening drew them apart, each going to their respective corner of the balcony.

Cody had the decency to appear not to have noticed the position he had found Donovan and Jessica in.  "Hey Boss.  Kersh is on the line."

Donovan nodded and glanced over at Jessica, who stood with her back to him, gazing out over the landscape.  "Fine."  

He followed Cody back into the room and took the cell phone that was handed to him.  "Donovan."  He listened briefly as he was given the location of the safe house he and his team were to escort Melanie to.   He ended the call and turned to Jake, Alex, and Cody.  "We're going to Philadelphia."

"I'll make the arrangements," Cody piped up and booted up his laptop.  A few minutes later, he closed it down.  "FBI has a jet ready for us at O'Hare.  They'll be ready to take off by the time we get there."

"Good job, Cody.  We'll inform Kersh when we're en route."

"So, it's back to Philly, huh?" Jess questioned upon entering the room.  

Donovan nodded.  "Crime Syndicate Task Force has some questions for you."

"Sure, whatever," she said, sighing.  "Let's just get this done."

***

To be continued...


	8. Beginnings of Goodbye

***

Donovan had to hand it to Cody.  The private jet was luxurious and comfortable.  Chairs, more like recliners, lined the compartment they currently used.  A smaller compartment housed an office, and another had sleeping facilities.  Not bad.  Jessica sat off by herself in a chair toward the front of the cabin.  She had barely spoken two words since they left Champaign.  That had been hours ago.  

Jess yawned and leaned back in the plush chair.  She could feel eyes on her and knew instinctively Donovan was watching her. Soon he would get up and come to her, unnerved by her sudden silence.  Of course, when she finally told him what was on her mind, he would not be a happy camper.

As Jessica had predicted, Donovan unbuckled the belt that held him fast to his seat.  In two quick strides he was sitting in the seat next to her.  She flashed him a quick, knowing smile as if she had expected him to join her. 

Before he could speak, she decided to lay it all out for him.  "When we land in Philly, I won't go to the safe house."

Donovan blinked hard.  Was she insane?  If the FBI insisted she be placed there, her life was in danger.  "Yes, you will," he insisted stubbornly.

"Look.  I don't know what's going to happen to me or what they expect to get from me," she explained.  "But I refuse to go into custody without making a couple of necessary visits."  

"No."

"I won't give in on these demands, Donovan," she assured.  She could be just as stubborn as he could.  "This is my life, not yours.  And I'm telling you that there are a couple of things I need to do."

"Jessica..."  

She shook her head and brushed away his hand as it reached for hers.  "No, Donovan.  You will not placate me.  It's impossible."  She turned in her seat to face him more fully and her hand fell lightly on his upper arm.  Her touch wasn't rough, but it was demanding.  "Give me this, or I swear to you I will make such a scene at the airport, God and everyone will know that Melanie Burgess is back in Philadelphia."

Donovan fixed a perplexed stare on her.  "Are you insane?  You would risk exposing yourself to the very people we are protecting you from?"

"I never asked to be protected."

"You're very stubborn," he insisted, still not willing to give in to her demand.

"I can be very loud, too.  You best remember that."  She straightened herself in her seat and folded her arms across her chest.  "Perhaps you'll handcuff and gag me like a common criminal?  Would that be your next thought, Donovan?"

He almost laughed at her madness.  She was right, however, it had been his next thought.  "You'll need to tell me your exact intentions, Jess.  It's my job to make sure you stay alive."

Jessica didn't smile, didn't show outwardly that she had won and he had given way to her demand.  That would be smug and one thing she knew inherently was that Donovan would not appreciate smugness.  She wasn't about to jeopardize her chances.  "Two things.  I want to visit my family and I want to see Addy one last time."

Donovan remained silent for a moment as he tossed those demands around in his mind.  "Fine," he finally answered.  "Jake and Alex can scout ahead and make sure things are safe enough to bring you to the locations you specify."  When she opened her mouth to protest, he quickly cut her off.  "Then, and only then, will you be able to make your visits."  

He was less than happy to agree to her terms, and yet he could not deny her this.  As she had stated, there was no way to tell what was going to happen to her.  If the FBI found her valuable enough to put her into Witness Protection, all that had been her life beforehand would be gone.  She would never get the chance to visit her family's graves or see Adelaide Drevin again.  That was a lot to put in front of someone and expect them to go away quietly.  Although it was well within his power to force her into that safe house and keep her from her personal agenda, he couldn't do that to her. 

***

"They'll be arriving in an hour."

"Ah, that is good," Vincento Luciano spoke softly into the phone.  "Gate?"

"They'll be diverted to a special hangar off the concourse.  Hangar 22B."

"I can't thank you enough, Special Agent," Vince replied, his voice dripping with sarcasm.  

"I'm sure you'll think of a way to repay my kindness."

"I will, most assuredly.  You've given me opportunity to get rid of the last obstacle in returning Deeds to my family.  I've missed his _special ability_ here at home, although he has been quite valuable in establishing contacts in various states recently."

"How nice for you," the voice replied uncaringly.  "I've reviewed the case, and all this woman can do is identify Drevin as being the driver of the vehicle who ran down her sister.  She cannot link him to the convenience store owner's murder.  It's heresay."

"Nevertheless, I want this problem gone."

"It's your mess," the man replied, emotionless.  "I don't give a shit how you clean it up, as long as you take care of your end of the bargain."

"Don't worry, my friend.  You'll receive payment for your services," he assured.  "However, there is one more duty you must perform."

"And that is?"

"You know it cannot be Deeds that takes out the Burgess woman.  You must do it."

"I...no," the man at the other end of the line replied.  "What I will do is find someone..."

"NO!" Vince's voice boomed, echoing through his spacious office.  "There is no time.  It will be your bullet that hits this mark.  If I find out otherwise...you may want to rethink your residency."

"I see.  Very well, Mr. Luciano.  I will see to it personally."

"Thank you."

***

Home.  She was finally home again.  It had been months since she set foot in Philadelphia, and she should feel welcome.  Now, even the familiar sounds of the airport, the sight of the city skyline, nothing felt as comforting and consoling as it used to.  

Just the thought of being at home used to make her feel whole, but it no longer did.  Things that she used to appreciate no longer held any appeal for her.  She glanced back at the plane they had just disembarked from and wanted to run back on and ask the pilot to drop her anywhere but where she now stood.

Donovan noticed the sudden change in Jessica, as if she were about to take flight.  Her eyes held that glassy look, as though she were a deer in the headlights of an oncoming vehicle and knew she was powerless to stop it from colliding with her.  He gently took her elbow and ushered her forward.  She would get through this, just as she had gotten through the last year of her life.  Her perseverance, tenaciousness, and sheer self-preservation would guarantee it. 

--

Picking up the binoculars, he held them steady as he watched the people who left the hangar.  He recognized each agent as they came into his view.  The one unrecognizable person turned out to be not so unrecognizable.  He knew her, had seen her a few times in the surveillance footage from the Landsing Hills Retirement Center.  So, this auburn haired beauty was the former mousy looking Melanie Burgess.  Interesting.  

He packed up his equipment, intent on following Donovan, but, somewhere in the mess of the airport traffic, he lost his target.  He slammed his fist against the steering wheel.  He was pissed, but all was not lost.  He knew there was one place that Burgess would go when she was in Philadelphia.  The proof was all over those security tapes.  She had a soft spot for Adelaide Drevin, and sooner or later, she would pay the old lady a visit.  

He laughed hatefully and turned his vehicle in the direction of the retirement home.  He would meet this last task of Luciano's and then he'd be gone.  Take the money and run.  He had already built up quite a large account in the Caymans.  After this last job, he'd be set for life.  No more government trained dog for him.  He was so out of there.

--

"Jake, Alex?" Donovan questioned quietly.  He stood a short distance from Jessica, not quite three feet, leaning against the tree that shaded the graves of her parents, sister, niece, and brother-in-law.  To any onlookers, it might appear he was speaking to her, when in fact he was speaking into his ear mic to his agents perched atop the roof of a building across the street from the cemetery.  

"Nothing," Jake's voice boomed into his ear.  "No one on the perimeter.  Just a few mourners scattered throughout the cemetery."

"Stay sharp," he commanded as he scanned the area for himself.

His attention turned back to Jessica.  She had already taken the time to brush the leaves that had littered the headstones of her loved ones.  She carefully placed a small bouquet of lilies on each grave, whispering that they were her mother's favorite.  

Before long, she sat cross-legged on the ground between her parent's graves and those of her sister's family.  She brushed at the cut grass that clung to visible areas of her blue jeans as she talked to her family.  He could hear the tears that broke through the words while she told them she might never be back to visit them, but she would make sure that they were always taken care of.  God, she was hurting, and it made him feel so very small that he was incapable of doing anything to ease her burden.  Donovan, The Ice Man, taken down by the feelings stirred by one mortal woman.  Who'd have thought it?

Jessica sat in a trance for the most part, reflecting on her life with the people who were now lost to her forever.  Her whole life was gone and now it was time for her to disappear as well.  She would do her best to keep the identity that Enigma had created for her, but if that needed changing, she would do what she had to.  

She looked up when she felt a hand fall on her shoulder.  Her eyes followed Donovan as he crouched down beside her.  His eyes were so dark, even in the sunlight, and she wondered what caused the drastic change in them.

"Time to go, Jessica," he stated softly.  "You're too much of a target out in the open, even if the location seems secure."

She nodded and stood slowly, brushing the dirt and grass from her jeans.  She wasn't really ready to leave.  In her heart and her mind, she knew this was the last time she would ever visit her family's final resting place.  "I love you," she whispered to them.  

Donovan's arm came around her shoulders in an unexpected gesture, and she leaned into his comfort gratefully.  As they walked away from the gravesite, she felt the gentle squeeze of his fingers, silently assuring her things would get easier.  Not necessarily better, because losing her entire family would never be something that she could accept, but in time, the loss would be less painful...easier.

***

Jess was restless and tossed in her bed for the umpteenth time.  There was something she wanted, needed, but she was at a loss as to what it was.  She stared at the hotel room door through the darkness.  She needed to leave, get out.   There were things left unsaid and she didn't think she could stand being turned over to the Task Force tomorrow not knowing if she'd get the chance to say what needed to be said.

"Alex," she whispered, but received no response.  Alex was sleeping soundly in the other bed.  As quietly as she could, she slipped from the bed and shrugged into her robe.  Slipping the room keycard into her pocket, she glanced back at Alex, who still had not moved a muscle.  

Jess made her way across the hallway, her bare feet making no sound on the plush carpet.  She glanced at the room one door down where Cody and Jake were sleeping.  Donovan had obtained three rooms this time, not wanting to deal with their whining.  His room was directly across from the room she shared with Alex.  

Donovan came awake at the sound of a soft tapping at the door.  He wanted to bury his head in the pillow and ignore it, but it was probably one of his team.  He couldn't ignore them, no matter how great the urge.  He left the warm, comfortable bed and went to the door.  Always cautious, he pulled one of his guns from its holster and held it out of view as he opened the door.

Jess smiled nervously.  "I...um...I know it's late, but..."

"Come in," he insisted, opening the door for her to enter and then quickly slipped his Glock into its holster, leaving Jessica totally unaware that he had even pulled the weapon.

Jess brushed past him and moved to the center of the room.  _Oh, holy hell, what was I thinking?_  Her mind reeled at the sight she beheld.  Frank Donovan, his robe barely tied and gaped open slightly, revealing his smooth, muscular chest.  Not even the fact that his hair had gone wild on him detracted from his appearance.  One side of his hair had flattened, while the other sprung up in several areas.  All she could think of was running her fingers through it.  What a pleasant experience that would be!

Donovan crossed the room and sat down on the bed.  Jessica had yet to speak and her eyes hadn't left him.  "Jessica?  Was there a reason for this visit?" he asked quietly as his eyes locked onto hers.  If she only knew how much he had wanted to go to her, but with Alex in the room it was impossible.  

Tomorrow would probably be the last day he would ever see her.  That thought saddened him more than he was willing to admit to himself.  Saying goodbye would be one of the hardest things he had ever done and he was not looking forward to it, not one bit.

"I just...needed to talk to you," she admitted, sitting next to him.  "I wanted to thank you..."   Her voice trailed off, distracted by his nearness.  The spicy aroma of his aftershave filled her nostrils and she wanted to bury her face against his neck.  She would do anything to get closer to his scent, closer to him.  She knew now why she had come to him.  She _wanted_ him.

"Thank me?  For what?  I've done nothing worth thanking me for," he stated.  He felt the warmth radiating from her.  He itched to reach out and take her into his arms, but he held back.  He wouldn't make the first move; he wouldn't ask her for what he wanted from her.  It wasn't fair to take from her knowing that was all it would ever be.  One night.  He didn't think she was the kind of woman that took sex casually.  He wasn't the type of man who would ask such a thing from her.

"No?  How many people in your position would give me the latitude you have?"   She turned slightly and her hand fell gently on his thigh.  His robe gaped open, and she touched bare skin along with the terrycloth.  Soft, warm, her fingers tingled from the contact.  She wanted more.  Oh, so much more.

His eyes closed momentarily with the sensation of her fingers skimming the surface of his thigh.  He wasn't even sure she realized her fingertip was tracing tiny circles over his skin.  Not that he was complaining, but he was finding it very difficult to think straight.  

"I mean...that you took me to my family's gravesite..." she continued when he didn't answer.  "And the visit with Addy tomor..."  she stopped suddenly when he grasped her hand. 

"Jessica," he groaned softly.  "There's so much more I wish I could give you."  He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the fingertips that had just moments before tantalized his thigh.  

"Do you?" she whispered shakily, her eyes fixated on his full lips as they kissed her fingers, knuckles, the inside of her wrist.  _Such exquisite pleasure._  "And what would you like to give me, Donovan?"

He let go of her hand to cup her face, his thumbs caressing her cheeks softly.  He brushed his lips against hers, barely grazing them, and yet it was as if he had struck a match, lighting the flame of desire.  "I would give you all that you hunger for, if it were in my power."

She wrapped her fingers around both of his wrists, gently pulling his hands away.  She looked intently into his eyes, wanting him to know how serious she was.  "And if it were you that I hungered for?"

His eyes were drawn to her lips as her tongue darted out to wet them.  So full, so ripe; he wanted to taste them again.  "Then I would give you all that I have," he answered as he dipped his head and captured her lips in a passionate kiss.  

She moaned when he broke the kiss, and the moan turned to a whimper when he found the sensitive area at the juncture of her neck and shoulder.  His hands made quick work in untying the sash of her robe, pushing the garment away from her shoulders so that he could feast himself on more of her silky skin.  

Jess hurriedly removed the robe and resumed her task of familiarizing herself with his body.  She slid her fingers into his hair, gently urging him onward in his task.  His lips were a delicious ecstasy to her skin and she never wanted the pleasure to end.  Her other hand roamed his upper arm and back, delighting in his taut, firm muscles, even through the thin cloth of his robe.  

He stood slowly, bringing her with him and as he gazed longingly into her eyes, his fingers slid under the thin strap of her satiny blue nightgown.  His mouth came down upon hers again, hungry, demanding as he rolled the straps leisurely off her shoulders.  

Jess didn't hesitate; dropping her arms from around his waist, she let the skimpy nightgown fall into a puddle around her feet.  She pressed herself fully against him, delighting in the rapturous moan he released as her breasts molded to his chest.  "Your turn," she whispered, gently pushing his robe away from his shoulders.

Donovan shrugged out of it quickly and pulled her back into his embrace.  He heard her sudden gasp and couldn't help the smile that danced on his lips.  His guess was that she hadn't been aware he was nude under his robe.  It was just one less obstacle as far as he was concerned.

Jess was a bit taken aback.  It wasn't exactly surprise at his nudity, but at the feel of his hardness pressed against her hip.  The sheer size of him was what astonished her.   She kissed him then, taking control for a moment while she had her way with his mouth, that gorgeous mouth and that sensual bottom lip.  She couldn't get enough of it.  She ran the tip of her tongue over it before kissing him fiercely; nibbling and sucking on his delectable lower lip.

His hands roamed the silky flesh of her arms, back, and hips before reaching his true destination.  When he did, one hand filled with her soft breast, kneading the generous mound, running the pad of his thumb over her taut nipple.  The sheer bliss of holding her, touching her intimately, elicited moans deep from within his throat.  Powerless to stop them, even if he wanted to, his moans mixed with hers as if coming from one source.  Passion was that source and release was the goal.

He lowered her slowly to the bed without breaking the kiss.  Their lips meshed and melded not able to get enough of each other.  Hands stroked, caressed, pinched, scratched, and touched every inch of flesh they could reach.  Legs entwined, and desire demanded the next step be taken to fulfillment.  He needed her, of that he had no doubt, but he wanted to make sure it was truly a feeling she shared.   

He broke the kiss, his eyes locking onto hers which were so glazed over with her need there was no reason to ask if she truly wanted this.  Her heated breath fanned his chin and cheek and as if in protest to his pulling away from her, she lifted herself up, her lips latching onto his hungrily.  Her hands roamed his naked flesh as she opened to him, silently begging him to fill her, to ease the ache he had caused within her body and soul.  

He broke away again, not ready to give her what she demanded.  His lips blazed a trail down her chin, her neck, pausing briefly to suckle at the soft hollow of her throat.  Only when she whimpered and slid her fingers into his hair, gently stroking, massaging, did he move from that spot.  Soon his mouth replaced the thumb that teased the nipple of her breast, licking, suckling, laving, and nipping until she cried out.  His need was growing in such force that it was getting difficult to think through the blood that rushed through his head and loins.  The ache was deep, wondrous, thrilling, and at the same time painful.  Soon. Soon.  First, he had to taste and tantalize her other nipple.  It was only fair.

Jess cried out softly at the delectable torture he was lavishing on her breast.  When his hand slid down her abdomen and hovered over her heated core, barely touching, only teasing, she cried, whimpered, moaned, and begged for his touch.  His _true_ touch.  "I can't take it anymore, Donovan.  You're a cruel, cruel man," she whispered throatily.

He lifted his head, his eyes danced with the desire that was slowly consuming him.  "I want this to last, Jessica," he admitted huskily.  "Can it last, beautiful Jess?  Can it?"

A tear escaped her, because she knew it was only for this one night.  "In here," she said, placing one hand over his heart and one over her own.  "We have all night, Donovan.  But I need you now," she insisted as she traced a gentle finger along his jaw.  

He closed his eyes as he nodded his agreement.  He lowered his head, his lips pressed against her ear and as he entered her, slowly, so slowly that she thought time had stood still, he whispered, "We'll make this night last forever, Jessica.  Every moment, until neither of us has another ounce to give."

***

to be continued...


	9. Dangerous Visitation

***

Donovan watched from the retirement home's security room as Jessica entered the visitor's area.  For her visit with Mrs. Drevin she had ditched her trademark blue jeans and tennis shoes for an off-white suit dress, high heels, and her hair was worked into a neat French twist.  As elegant and charming as she appeared, her eyes held nothing but sadness each time they had looked into his since they had made love.  

He had to admit she did a good job at hiding her feelings, and he was sure he had as well.  As far as he could see, his team didn't know or suspect Jessica had spent the night with him or that he had committed a serious breech of ethics in sleeping with her.

"Check in," he ordered over the earpiece.

"Quiet out front," Cody responded quickly.

"East side clear, I'm heading around back," Jake announced.

"Same here...west side of the building is clear," said Alex.

--

Jess smiled as she approached her old friend who was staring out the window of the recreation room.  "Good morning, Addy."

Addy turned slowly toward the voice calling her.  "Jessie, oh honey...it's so good to see you!"

Jess wrapped her arms around Addy in a friendly hug.  "Addy, I can't stay long, I just came to tell you that..."

"And I'm so glad you're here.  You see, there's someone here that you'll want to see," Addy assured and smiled genuinely.

"What? Who?" She asked just as her nostrils were assaulted by the sickening smell of body odor.

"Me," a deep voice responded from behind her.

Jess turned and her voice caught in her throat.  Standing before her was the murdering bastard who took her family from her.

"Honey, isn't it wonderful that your sweet friend Jessie came over to play today?" Addy beamed happily at her son.

Jess stood speechless.  Over a year of chasing him and she couldn't find the strength to move, let alone speak.  

"I've been hoping you would come calling on Mother," Wayne said, sickly sweet.  "She's spoken so highly of my good friend, Jessie.  It would be a shame if I had missed you."

"I..." she stammered.  _God, I have to get out of here!_  Her eyes shifted, looking for away to escape without causing a scene.  Several of the retirement home's residents were gathered in the room with their families.  She eyed Drevin's jacket pocket, his hand thrust deeply inside.  She could tell he hid a gun.  If she took the chance and ran, it was likely an innocent bystander would be hurt.

Drevin closed the distance between them quickly, gripping Jessica harshly by the upper arm.  "Do you mind if we go for a walk?" he asked through clenched teeth.  "We have a lot of catching up to do."

Jess shook her head, "No, really...I have to be going."  It was a feeble attempt, but she was trying more to stall him than to convince him to let her go.  She knew Donovan and Cody were monitoring the room.  They would be sure to see Drevin and come after him.

"Nonsense, dear.  You and Wayne go outside and play," Addy insisted.  "I'll watch from the window."

Jess had no choice but to go with her mortal enemy; she couldn't take the chance that anyone would be hurt or killed because of her.  He dragged her forcibly by the arm through the double glass doors to the grounds at the back of the facility.  She turned her head, looking over her shoulder.  Surely Donovan or someone from his team had seen Drevin by now.  _This is it, Melanie, Jessica, or whoever the hell you are.  You're about to join your family in death._

--

"Sonofabitch," Donovan growled, as he watched the man approach Jessica and Addy in the recreation room.  "Drevin's got Jessica...and they're headed out the back."  His throat tightened with frustration and fear.  Frustration that he had let this happen; fear that Jessica was now in the very hands of the man he was supposed to be protecting her from.

"I'm on it!" Jake and Alex acknowledged in unison.

Donovan raced from the security room to the exterior exit catching up to Drevin and Jessica before Alex and Jake arrived.  He spotted Drevin holding Jess by the arm and had a gun held to her side.  "Freeze!  Federal Agent!" he yelled forcefully.  

Drevin turned, positioning Jessica in front of him like a human shield.  "Holster your gun, Fed...or she dies."

"You bastard, you filthy bastard," Jessica ground out, finally finding her voice.  "Kill me, you sonofabitch...just like you killed my sister and niece."

"Your sister was an unfortunate circumstance," he replied flippantly.  He knew instantly to whom she referred.  He had only killed four women in his lifetime.  Three were whores and one was the woman who had witnessed the shakedown at the convenience store.  The woman's daughter died at his hand as well.  "Now shut up," he ordered, tightening his grip on her arm and shoving the barrel of the gun under her chin.

Donovan locked eyes with Jessica's.  He silently willed her to remain calm.  He could occupy Drevin until Jake or Alex arrived on the scene.  "You don't want to do this, Drevin.  All the charges have been dropped in that case.  You're a free man...why screw it up now?"

Drevin released a bitter laugh.  "You're such a stooge, you know that?"  Before he could finish his thought, he felt cold steel touch the back of his neck.  

"Let her go or I'll blow out what little brains you have."

Drevin glanced over his shoulder and slowly released his grip on Jess, who stumbled over to Donovan.

Donovan placed a steadying arm around her shoulder, but still held his gun on Drevin.  He eyed the newcomer and nodded briefly.  "David."

"Hello, Frank," Director David Kersh acknowledged.  "Stupid of you not to bring her in when you arrived."

Donovan shrugged.  He really cared little what was thought about his approach to this case.  He knew he was out of line and had given Jessica too much leeway, but sometimes policies and procedures didn't fit the situation.  

Kersh glanced around at the relative seclusion they had.  Trees and bushes lined the area and onlookers would have a difficult time ascertaining what was happening between the small group.  He slowly moved his gun from the back of Drevin's head and lined up Jessica in his sights.  "And I'm really sorry it has come down to this...but it's her...or me..."

"Goddamn you, David," Donovan growled, angry and frustrated with a man whom he had known for years and considered a friend.  "You set this whole fucking thing up, didn't you?"  His mind worked furiously trying to devise a plan to get Jessica out safely.  His only hope would be Jake and Alex.  It was entirely possible for him to take out Kersh and Drevin, but he feared either he or Jessica would take a bullet in the process.

"You might say that," Kersh sneered.

"Destroyed evidence and had anyone killed who knew the slightest detail about this case.  Tell me, David...is it all worth it?" Donovan asked, desperate to stall Kersh.  

"It will be," Kersh assured, firming his grip.  

Donovan's eyes flicked just slightly to the area behind Drevin and Kersh.  Inwardly he felt a little relieved; Alex and Jake had taken their positions and were ready to move in.  

Kersh glanced over at Drevin, who stood beside him with his gun also trained on Jessica.  "Go, get out of here.  This is all to save your ass, so go...NOW!"

Jess watched as Drevin nodded and started to leave.  Kersh would kill them all and Drevin would go free.  She couldn't bear to see that happen.   She wrenched herself from Donovan's grip and started after Drevin, screaming his name.

Donovan saw Kersh's finger squeeze the trigger when Jessica moved.  Drevin also turned in her direction at the sound of her voice.  Both guns were trained on her; both men's fingers pulled the trigger without hesitation.  He lunged for her, calling out her name as he fired his own gun in time with theirs.  

At the same time as his weapon fired, he heard the report of several other shots.  From the corner of his eye, he saw Drevin and Kersh fall to the ground.  He felt the spattering of the warm, sticky liquid on his face and neck at the same time he collided with Jessica, but had felt no pain.  _Not my blood._  

She was planted firmly underneath him when they landed on the hard ground.  Her eyes were closed and she wasn't breathing.  His hands roamed frantically over her searching for her injury as his eyes took in the sight of the blood pooling the ground beneath her.  

"Oh, God, Jessica," he moaned, devastated.  Within seconds he found her shoulder wound.  The bullet had gone clean through.  Thankfully there appeared to be no head wound.  "Come on, _breathe!_" he ordered determinedly.  One hand drifted to her throat and felt for a pulse while his other began unbuttoning the jacket of her dress.  

Jess choked in a ragged breath as her eyes flew open.  Sharp, searing pain ripped through her shoulder and she was having trouble breathing.  For a moment she thought she was dead, but looming above her, was the most beautiful sight she had ever laid eyes on.  "Shit, Donovan, I'm not dead...get off me," she sassed not unkindly.  

His eyes found the teasing glint in hers.  "You didn't complain last night," he whispered, hearing approaching footsteps.  

Although in pain, Jess couldn't stop the smile that played on her lips.  "And I wouldn't be complaining now," she responded lightly, "but you weigh a ton when you're not engaging in that particular activity."  She placed a tender hand to his cheek, but removed it quickly when Alex, Jake, and Cody kneeled down beside them.  

Jake reached out and tapped Jessica's chest.  "Good thing you listened to Donovan," he commented.  

As the others nodded their agreement, Jessica noticed for the first time the bullet lodged in the Kevlar vest she wore under her jacket.  If she had done as she had wanted and not worn the vest, the bullet would have gone straight into her heart.  

Cody and Donovan helped Jessica to a sitting position and then he wrapped a pressure bandage over her wound.  "They should have been so lucky," he commented, nodding to the two still forms lying a few feet away.

Jessica gazed unfeelingly at the men.  One had killed her sister and niece in cold blood; the other had helped cover it up.  They had gotten far better than they deserved and she hoped they rotted in hell.

--

Donovan stopped the attendants before they loaded Jessica into the ambulance.  She was pale and had lost a good amount of blood, but she was very much alive and that was really all that mattered to him.  He touched her cheek softly and smiled down at her.  "I'll meet you at the hospital."

Jess nodded and took his hand tenderly into hers.  "I owe you, Donovan."

He shook his head and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.  "You don't owe anyone anything, Jess," he assured her.  "Cody's going with you to the hospital right now.  I need to meet with that task force and Kersh's superiors, but I'll see you as soon as I can."

"Until then, Donovan," she replied, bringing his hand to her lips and pressing a kiss to his knuckle.  

Donovan nodded to the attendants as he withdrew his hand.  Minutes later the ambulance was on its way to the hospital.  "Let's go," he ordered.  

After meeting with the task force and Kersh's superiors, Donovan was able to ascertain that Kersh had not revealed the new identity of Melanie Burgess and they knew nothing of Jessica Crenshaw.  As far as he was concerned it could stay that way.  Vague was a good description of the details he provided the agents who interviewed him.  

He didn't give much credence to the threats they issued for his behavior either.  A month's suspension was handed down to him for not following procedure in bringing in a witness when ordered.  A month's suspension weighed against giving an emotionally tortured woman a little peace of mind?  He could live with that.

The only thing he regretted was that by the time he and the team had been debriefed, Jessica had disappeared from the hospital although she had been under guard.  Somehow the FBI agent posted at her door had been distracted and she slipped away without being noticed.  

***

Epilogue to follow...


	10. An Enigmatic Message

***

Cody glanced up from his monitor when he heard the footsteps approach.  A month had passed since that particular sound had been heard.  The Special Ops team had been shut down and he had been the only member to grace the dreary looking building in that time.  He welcomed the sound of the first arrival.  "Hey, Boss."

Donovan smiled just a little.  "Cody.  How've you been?"  He had actually missed his geeky agent.  He missed a lot of things, but perhaps they were things that were not meant to be.

"Good.  You?"

Donovan shrugged.  "Not bad."

The sound of the telephone ringing interrupted the relative quiet of the room.  "Forrester," Cody answered.  After a moment, he handed the phone to Donovan.

"Donovan."

"I have a message for you, Mr. Donovan," the monotone voice stated.

"And that is?"

"Check your email.  You will find directions to a meeting place.  Show or not...it's your choice."

"What the hell..." Donovan's face drew in confusion.  "Who the hell is this?"

"Let's just say...I'm an enigma."

Donovan held the receiver after the line went dead, staring at it like it was an alien.  

"Who was that?" Cody questioned.

Donovan brushed aside the question and pointed to the computer.  "Pull up email."

Cody nodded and clicked on the email icon.  One message stuck out like a flashing billboard.  "**Missing Bounty Huntress Found**".  Cody cast a look up at Donovan before opening the email.  

"Print it out," he commanded.  He waited the two seconds for the sheet of paper to spit out before turning and leaving the Nest as quickly as he had entered.  

_Donovan,_

_Couldn't take a chance on the government messing in my life anymore.  Enigma has assured me that any mention of Jessica Crenshaw has been removed from any and all files relating to the Luciano family.  _

_I hope you can understand.  I've given up my identity once.  I didn't want to go through that again.  I also hope you can understand why I disappeared while this was being taken care of._

_If you can understand...and wish to see me again...meet me at the Sears Tower.  The Skydeck Observatory at 10a.m.  _

_If you don't show, just know...it's still forever in my heart._

_J.C._

~finis~

A/N:  Thanks to all who followed this little adventure and I hope you truly enjoyed it as much as I did. :)  Thanks to all who reviewed or left feedback through email.  I greatly appreciate it!  --Shel


End file.
